Kuroko no Monogatari
by neko-nya
Summary: When darkness spreads across the land, it's up to Kuroko to recruit help from the most unlikely creature: a human. Youkai AU. (KaKuro, AoKise, MidoTaka, MuraHimu)
1. Encounter

**A/N:** This world was created with the help of Amiyuu! There will be notes on the youkai and/or historical titbits at the bottom of the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 1: Encounter

Staring the girl down, Kagami Taiga rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. "Umm, so is there anything actually holding you back? Justice needing to be served? Unfinished business of some kind?"

It feels stilted and insincere, but then again, spirits have never been his forte.

The girl gives it some thought and shakes her head. "No, none that I can think of."

"Then maybe you should move on or something. You're causing the people around here a lot of grief."

Was that too curt?

It was probably too curt, he decides.

Luckily, the spirit merely frowns, worried. "Oh dear, am I? I just wanted to keep an eye on everyone and see how they were getting along without me."

"They're fine. Or, they will be. All the more knowing you've moved on peacefully," he says.

She nods. "I suppose you're right about that, onmyouji-sama."

"I'll say a prayer and send you off then."

"Alright. Thank you and sorry for causing so much trouble."

* * *

"Thank you so much, onmyouji-sama! How can we ever repay you?" the village chief asks once he steps back outside.

Kagami shakes his head, just glad the whole thing's done with. "No, don't worry about it. I was just doing my job. Besides, that spirit really wasn't that hard to deal with, and she shouldn't come back now that I've cleansed the place. Make sure you place offerings at her grave every now and then though."

"We'll make sure of it! Are you sure there's nothing we can offer for your help?"

He smiles and shakes his head again. "I don't need anything, so I'll just be on my way now, thanks."

Suddenly, he pauses, the hair on the back of his neck raises and he gets the feeling that he's being watched. But upon examination, he didn't see anything amiss and the feeling fades. Pulling his lips taut, he considers searching the village for the source, just in case it turns out to be something hostile.

But then a dog barks in the distance, startling him out of his thoughts. Another dog starts barking. And then another. He makes up his mind then and there to not go on that search. It's not like he can feel like anymore, and it was probably nothing anyway, he tells himself.

The dogs continue barking.

Not particularly wanting to see the beasts up close and personal, he quickly scampers out of the village, leaving awed villagers in his wake, shouting their thanks after him.

* * *

"I should've asked for a map of this place," he mutters to himself as he chucks a pebble into his campfire.

The moon hovers in the sky, its rays peeking through the foliage above him. After leaving the village, he spent the rest of his day wandering around in this forest, lost and confused, until hunger eventually won out and made him stop for the night. He's always assumed he had a decent sense of direction, but that's clearly been proven wrong by the forking paths and winding trails.

"How am I supposed to find anyone if I can't even find my way out of this stupid forest? Where am I even supposed to start? Why can't things be more straightforward like in the capital?" Kagami complains, wolfing down his food. "I suppose it could be worse though. It's a good thing I got over my fear of ghosts or today would've gone horribly wrong."

"Good thing, indeed. That sounds like the most crippling fear for an onmyouji to have," a voice suddenly says from beside him.

He leaps back at the sight of the person next to him, tripping over the log he was sitting on and falling on his butt. "Whoa!"

"So you're looking for someone, hmm? That's too bad. I was hoping you'd say you were on an epic journey to dispel evil from the land or something," the stranger says as though he wasn't sprawled on the ground at the moment.

"Oi, where'd you even come from!?" he demands, pointing accusingly at the other.

The boy frowns. "How rude. I've been here for a while now. You just didn't notice me."

Kagami shakes his head. "No way! I would've noticed you walking towards me—never mind managing to get this close! Seriously, where'd you come from?"

There's a pause. "Technically, there," the stranger says, pointing at the fire. "But that's not important."

"You just claimed to come out of my campfire so I'd say otherwise." Furrowing his brow, he shuffles back onto the log and studies the other more closely. The boy has a small build and light blue hair and a neutral expression on his face—nothing that would make him stand out.

"Well, technically, I came out of the smoke as opposed to the fire," the boy elaborates with a shrug.

He takes a moment to consider those words. Then he gets the overwhelming urge to slap himself for being so stupid. "You're a youkai."

The stranger nods. "That's correct. An enenra if you want to be more specific."

"Enenra…wait, aren't you supposed to come out of bonfires? My campfire can hardly be called a bonfire," he says, unsure why he was trying to dispute the other's claim.

"True. And while that'd normally be the case, I guess you can say I'm an improved enenra. For me, any smoke will do."

"That's comforting to hear," he says dryly. "Why can't I sense you? You say you're improved, but I can barely sense you right now and you're right in front of me."

Shrugging, the youkai responds, "That could be because I'm not exactly the strongest youkai around, and it doesn't help that your fire's not very big or smoky. My improvements were mostly in skills and capabilities as opposed to power level."

"Right. Also good to know. So should I be exorcising you?" he asks. "I mean, you don't seem malicious or anything, but you're still a youkai."

"Please don't. That sounds unpleasant. I was just going to offer to help you out," the youkai says.

Kagami narrows his eyes. "Help me out? Out of this forest?"

"Yes, and also with finding whomever you're looking for."

That catches his attention. "Oh? And how would you go about helping me? Never mind that, _why_ are you even offering me your help in the first place?"

The youkai doesn't even blink at the suspicion in his voice. "I've been watching you. I saw you fight off those bandits yesterday, and I watched you in the village today. It doesn't seem like you're from around here, but you look strong enough."

"Strong enough for what?"

"By now, you've probably already noticed that this place isn't always safe, and it's only going to get worse from here on out," the youkai continues. "However, I believe we can form a mutually beneficial working relationship. You have the power and I have useful contacts. I will support you from the dark and be your shadow."

"I'm not really sure how to take any of that," he admits.

"Well, before you think this over, add more wood to your fire, please."

"Oh, sorry," Kagami apologizes instinctively, tossing a couple of branches into the flames. "So what exactly do you want in return for helping me find my friend?"

"Nothing that is outside your capabilities," the youkai answers vaguely, "or so I assume. It's hard to tell at this point."

"Helpful," he mutters. "And how would you propose I search for this person?"

Picking up a stick, the youkai draws an outline on the ground. "This place is made up of six regions. You're in Seirin right now. You can't very well go to every corner of each region—I'm not sure your lifespan would allow for it."

Kagami scowls. "Thanks for the reminder."

"You might not be able to search entire regions, but I can. There are places in each region where they can make bonfires big enough to give me the power to search through the land for your friend. If they have a fire nearby, I should be able to find them," the youkai explains. "At the very least, I know where you can get a map."

"It's all very tempting, but you still haven't told me what you want out of this," he says.

"I'll only tell you more if you accept my offer. Otherwise, the less you know of our world, the better."

He makes a face at that. "What are you talking about? I'm an onmyouji. It's part of my job to know about your world."

The youkai shrugs. "True. But you have a long way to go yet, and accepting this will mean taking a very sudden plunge into a world your human mind probably couldn't even begin to imagine."

Kagami stares into the fire in thought. It's true that there's no way for him to search every nook and cranny in this vast land without help, but is he really desperate enough to accept help from a youkai?

"I understand this must be very hard for you to accept given general the relationship between youkai and humans," the youkai says.

"Right. And how do I know if this isn't some sort of trick?"

"Well, there are so many other ways to trick a human, revealing myself and talking to you is probably the least effective," the other reasons. "Not to mention this seems far more like an act of desperation than trickery considering how I, a youkai, am asking a human for help, wouldn't you agree? Do you still not believe me? It's unfortunate that the human mind is often so closed off."

"I'll accept only if you stop taking every opportunity to point out how human I am," he snaps. "And I reserve the right to refuse after I've gotten all the information if I deem it unreasonable."

The youkai's lips curl upwards. "Then we have an accord. You may call me Kuroko."

"Kagami Taiga."

"Do you have any sake so that we can formalize this agreement?" Kuroko asks.

"Like sakazuki? Is that really necessary? I don't have any of that stuff on me."

"No worries, we can wait until tomorrow to do it. Don't worry, I'll still get you out of this forest. Consider it a gesture of good will. For now, I suppose this spoken agreement will have to suffice," Kuroko says.

Kagami crosses his arms. "How about giving me your true name to show your sincerity?"

"How bold of you, Kagami-kun. There's power in a name and I would never give mine so carelessly away to a human. I promise to lead you out of the forest tomorrow and I promise I will do you no harm. I'm afraid you'll simply have to trust me for now."

* * *

In the morning, Kagami lights a small torch like he'd been instructed the night before. On the account of wanting him to get a good night's rest, Kuroko had insisted on debriefing him the next day instead. He had tried to argue that carrying a torch around in the daylight would be considered strange by most people, but the youkai countered with the fact that he was hopelessly lost and needed a guide to lead him out of the forest, so either way, the torch would be needed.

Holding the torch in his hand, he scratches the back of his head in confusion. "Was there supposed to be some sort of spell or do I just wait here? I've only exorcised youkai; I've never had to summon one."

"Good morning, Kagami-kun."

He jumps back at the voice behind him. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"I didn't sneak up on you. I was waiting for you and have been here from the moment you lit that torch. You just didn't notice me. Again," Kuroko says, his blank expression giving away nothing. "I hope you slept well. Have you already eaten breakfast?"

"What? Yeah, I've eaten. At this point, I'm just ready to get out of this forest," Kagami answers.

Kuroko nods. "Very well. Then let's walks and I'll tell you everything you need to know."

"Before that, how long's it gonna take to get out of this forest?" he asks.

"Not too long. We should make it to the shrine in this afternoon and I'm sure they'll put you up for the night. I've already notified them of your arrival, and if this set up makes you uncomfortable, know that there are other priests and priestesses there."

"That wasn't what I was worried about—though it is a good point. I was just making sure I had enough food to last the day. Anyway, go on."

Glancing up at him, Kuroko says, "You're surprisingly trusting for someone whose job is to fight youkai."

He shrugs. "Hey, I do a lot more than just that. Either way, even if I question you, you'll just spew the same excuses you did last night. And besides, you haven't done anything wrong yet—not to mention you don't seem all that hard to get rid of if it really comes down to that, so I'm not worried."

"How blunt. Well, like I said last night, this place is made up of six regions. In the last few years, a strange miasma began moving in from the west. Not everyone can see it, but anything living in or near it can feel it and are affected by it. Though many tried to flee, the effects took hold surprisingly quickly. The youkai lose control of themselves and their rationality and have turned into savage animals. And the actual animals have grown rabid and violent. I barely managed to escape myself."

"And the people?"

"The humans are oblivious to it, but they're affected too. Many of their crops are failing and although they haven't lost all rational thought, they're volatile and prone to violence. Corruption, prejudice, and crimes have become commonplace. Many villagers have taken to robbing strangers on the road. There are a lot of angry spirits lingering around those areas."

Kagami frowns at the image Kuroko's words present. "What about priests or priestesses or monks? You know, people with powers? Don't tell me they just ditched their homes and ran."

Kuroko shakes his head. "It couldn't be helped. At the end of the day, they're only human. Those who didn't flee were killed or corrupted. Most of the shrines and temples are now overran with youkai and spirits. Seirin is the only region unaffected by the miasma as of the moment, but I doubt it'll last for much longer unless something is done about it."

"Then what about I supposed to do about all this?" he asks. "You just said it yourself: people with spiritual powers couldn't do anything."

"On their own, they were helpless. But so were the youkai," Kuroko says. "That's why I'm proposing we team up."

* * *

A/N:Seasons greetings! Decided to post this up on here as well as AO3. I haven't completely decided on all the pairings yet, so please bear with me on that. And KnB's back, hmm? I wonder how it's going to go. I'm pretty stoked to see how they interact.

Onmyouji: Professional practitioners of onmyoudou. Their responsibilities ranged from tasks such as keeping track of the calendar, to mystical duties such as divination and protection from evil spirits. (wiki)

Enenra: A youkai, or Japanese monster, that is made out of smoke. It resides in bonfires and when it emerges, it takes the form of a human. It is said that the enenra can only be seen by the pure of heart. (youkai wiki)


	2. Seirin

Chapter 2: Seirin

Kagami arches a brow at the proposal. "Team up? What good would that do? I'm just a single person who happens to have a bit of power and you're just a single youkai who needs smoke to appear."

"While there's truth and logic behind your pessimism, I still think it's possible," Kuroko says. "We can make up for each other's weaknesses. Humans, especially those with spiritual powers, have a natural resistance to effects of the miasma, and youkai, not me per say, have the strength."

"Fine. Let's say we somehow get a couple of strong youkai—or even an army of strong youkai to join us. Then what? Do we go storm the other five regions and take them back by force?" he asks drily.

Kuroko shakes his head. "No, that's a terrible plan, Kagami-kun. The casualties would be far too high for both sides. I hope your plans aren't all this bad."

"Shut up, it was just an example!"

"I see. Well, there's a far simpler way to take back the land. You see, there are certain shrines in each region that hold a vast amount of energy. Unfortunately, it's also the miasma's epicentre, but if you can get that one place purified, you'll give the region a fighting chance. And not surprisingly, that's also where the largest bonfires are. So if we can get to those shrines, I can also help you look for that person," he explains.

"You make it sound so simple," he mutters, unconvinced.

"Is that your way of saying no?" Kuroko asks.

Kagami shakes his head. "I'm not saying no yet. Let me think on it. I'll give you my answer when we get to the shrine."

Ideally, he would like to have the chance to assess the situation first hand before agreeing or declining the offer. But unfortunately—or perhaps, fortunately, in this case—he's in the one region free of miasma. If things really are as bad as Kuroko says in the other regions, had he wound up elsewhere, he might've wound up dead before his search ever started.

He crosses his arms as best as he can with his hands full and tilts his head back to think. His only options right now seems to be retreat or make powerful friends. Although no one back at the capital would care if he turned back, he'd never be able to forgive himself for leaving without trying, not when he's the one who allowed the situation to get so out of hand.

So, now, the only question is whether he should team up with this youkai who's reached out to him or find someone stronger.

In the distance, he can sense youkai skittering away, distancing themselves from him.

"It's been a long time since I've been out to the countryside. The youkai around here don't interact with humans much out here, do they?" Kagami notes. "Now that I think about it, I didn't really see any in the village yesterday either."

Kuroko glances over. "No. It's generally peaceful in the countryside, especially Seirin. With the exception of the occasional prank on passing travellers, the youkai out here avoid humans when they can."

"Why?"

"I don't know. It's always been like that. If you're talking about as of recently, I suspect it's because the ones that managed to escape from the other regions just want to be left in peace," Kuroko tells him. "Many of them have lost friends and family to the darkness."

That comes as a surprise to him. He never gave much thought to youkai having relationships like family or friends. The youkai in the capital were usually small and harmless. Only a few select types of youkai could put up with the crowdedness and the dirtiness of the city life.

"I would've never guessed youkai would have those kinds of problems," Kagami admits. "But then, I guess I've never really had a proper conversation with one before either. In the capital, the people and the youkai live so closely, we're always called in to exorcise the ones that get unruly, so I can't exactly imagine them being shy or intimidated by people."

"Life in the city sounds unpleasant for the youkai," Kuroko says.

Kagami shrugs. "I couldn't say for sure since I'm not a youkai. I'd say it's different, but not necessarily unpleasant. It takes a while to get used to, but they certainly don't seem to mind it there. Besides, more often than not, the people just ignore them. So you've never been to a city?"

Kuroko shakes his head. "It's not something I've ever found particularly compelling. I've watched a few who've gone to seek fame and fortune only to never be heard from again."

"That sounds about right," he sighs. "A couple people from my hometown did that too. It's pretty easy to disappear in the city, though I suppose you wouldn't need any help with that."

"Is fame and fortune the reason you went to the capital then, Kagami-kun?" Kuroko asks.

He arches a brow at the idea. "What? No. Nothing like that. I never had such lofty aspirations. It was just…"

Before he can finish his sentence, the trees suddenly seem to disappear, giving way to the open air and sky. The claustrophobic feeling that's been niggling at him immediately fades away. He shields his eyes from the brightness and waits for his vision to adjust. After a full day of being surrounded by trees, a change in scenery has never been more welcomed.

"Looks like we finally made it out of the woods," Kuroko says. "Do you see that hill over there with the shrine on top?"

Kagami nods. "That's where we need to go? That doesn't seem too bad. Looks like there's time to stop for a bite first." Dropping his bag to the ground, he begins unpacking his lunch for the day.

Curious, Kuroko watches him empty his sack. "What are you doing?"

He blinks, looking down at the food in his hands. "Like I said, stopping for a bite."

"You're eating all of that?"

"Oh, sorry, did you want some?" he asks, offering a rice ball.

Kuroko shakes his head. "Are you sure you're human, Kagami-kun?"

* * *

It's well into the afternoon when they finally arrive at the bottom of the hill. The 'hill' looks far more like a mountain up close, and it makes him want to retract his earlier statement about it not seeming 'too bad'. Staring at all the stairs he'll have to climb, Kagami turns to look at Kuroko. "Are all the shrines we have to visit on top of hills like this?"

Just the very thought of climbing those stairs is making him want to call it a day.

Kuroko makes a pained face, one enough to rival his own. "Yes, unfortunately, I believe most of them are. If you'll excuse me, I'll go and let them know you're here."

"Wait, no you don't. You're just saying that because you don't want to climb all these stairs with me, aren't you?" Kagami complains.

"Please understand, I'm not a very strong youkai, Kagami-kun," Kuroko says seriously, a bead of sweat rolling down his face as if to emphasize his point. "If I try to climb those stairs, I promise you, I'll die."

His brows furrow in disbelief. "What kind of youkai are you!? You can't die from climbing a few steps! No one can!" Unsure of whether it would be effective or not, he grabs Kuroko by the collar with his free hand and begins dragging him up the stairs. "I don't care. You're coming with me. If we're gonna be partners, you better be prepared to suffer with me."

"No, please spare me, Kagami-kun," Kuroko whines in his monotonic voice. Despite his protests, he doesn't simply vanish like Kagami was expecting him to and begins reluctantly climbing up the stairs with him.

About a quarter way up, Kuroko collapses face down on the floor and stops moving. Startled, Kagami rolls the youkai onto his side. If it wasn't for the torrent of sweat running down Kuroko's face, he wouldn't have been able to tell very much of anything with the blank expression on the other's face.

"Don't tell me you actually died. Are you sure you're a youkai? I didn't know they could actually be this weak," he mutters.

"Avenge me," the youkai groans, looking straight ahead into the middle distance, "or I'll haunt you for the rest of your short human life."

He wipes the sweat off his brow and rolls his eyes. Deciding to take pity on the other, he says, "I get it. I get it. Fine, go on ahead. Tell the people I'll be up before the sun sets."

Instead of getting up, Kuroko merely vanishes from where he's lying down. "Thank you, Kagami-kun."

Kagami shakes his head and blows out his torch. "What a weird little guy."

* * *

When he finally gets to the top, he's greeted by a young woman in her miko garb and several masked tengu. "You must be the onmyouji who's on an epic journey to dispel evil from this land," the miko says, passing him a cup of water. "We've been waiting for you."

Kagami narrows his eyes at Kuroko, who's quietly standing to the side. He seems to have recovered from his climb. He chugs the water and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. "That's not how I'd put it. Dispelling evil isn't at the top of my list of priorities."

The miko blinks. "It's not?"

"No, I'm just looking for someone," he tells her. "But it seems like it's somehow found its way onto my list regardless. I'm Kagami Taiga."

"Aida Riko," the woman introduces herself. "I inherited this shrine from my father. This one here's Hyuga, the tengu of this shrine and mountain. And these ones are Izuki, Mitobe, and Koganei. They're the tengu of nearby mountains, but they spend most of their time here nowadays. Actually, Kiyoshi should be here too, but he's out at the moment. Come, you must be hungry and tired. We'll take you in for the night, so we can talk later. I'll have the baths and food prepared for you."

"O-oh, yeah, thanks," he says, following them towards the buildings. Stepping past the barrier erected around the shrine, he pauses to admire it. Although not the strongest he's seen, it's well made and thoughtfully constructed. "Did you put this barrier up?"

Aida nods. "It took a couple of tries, but I think I got it. Only humans and approved youkai are allowed to pass through it. If you wouldn't mind taking a look at it later, I'd like to strengthen it up some more—especially after what's been happening in the other regions."

"This is the last Great Shrine that still stands," Kuroko says. "We can't let it fall."

"You've recovered enough to speak?" Kagami asks teasingly.

Kuroko frowns. "I have. And I thought about what you said earlier, Kagami-kun. You were right. If we're going to be partners in this journey, we should be facing challenges together. I will endeavour to climb the stairs with you next time—if you decide to travel with me, that is."

He blinks, caught off guard by the sudden seriousness. But seeing the other's earnestness, he chuckles and shakes his head, his mind made up. "Don't push yourself too hard. It won't help if my guide around the countryside dies a quarter way up some stairs."

"I think I made it a little further than a quarter way up," Kuroko says.

"No, you really didn't."

Aida smiles. "You two seem to be getting along well enough."

Looking up, Kagami asks her, "Say, why don't _you_ go help Kuroko on his 'epic journey'? His criteria never said it had to be an onmyouji, did it?"

The miko shakes her head. "I have a shrine to run. And as you can probably tell from my wards, I'm not strong enough to march into the other regions and expect to survive. We've had priests and priestesses take refuge here, all of them stronger than me, but they couldn't stop it. Look over there." She raises a hand and points into the distance where mountains seem to be covered in a thick, grey fog.

Even from a distance, he can feel something off. It causes the hair on the back of his neck to stand and sends a shiver down his spine. Swallowing hard, he does his best to keep his voice even as he asks, "That's the stuff, then?"

"You can feel it, can't you?" Aida asks, looking out with a frown. "All the darkness it's hiding. We're very lucky here, to have our land unaffected still. But it's only a matter of time before the miasma spreads to Seirin. When that happens, I don't know what'll happen to us and all the refugees. Most of the people driven from their homes want to return. That's why, if you can take that first step and liberate the Great Shrines, I firmly believe that others will follow and take up your cause."

He rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. "Well, like I said, my cause is to find my brother. But I suppose if I'm going to have to travel around, I might as well help out where I can, right? That being said, even though I just agreed to this, I have no idea how much help I'll actually be."

Aida gives him a hard slap on the back and laughs. "Have a little confidence. Since Kuroko's putting his faith in you, I will too. He's supposed to be the guardian of this shrine after all."

Kagami's eyes widen as he turns to Kuroko. "Wait, he's the _what_?"

* * *

From the corner of the room, Kuroko says, "Thank you for agreeing to help me. I'm glad you said yes."

"No problem. But more importantly, tell me: how can you be the guardian of this shrine when you can't even climb the stairs to get up here?" he asks, still unable to process the thought. He's soaking in the bath with a towel on his head, and he plans to enjoy it as much as possible while he still has the luxury to. "I actually have to remind myself you're a youkai at times because you seem so normal."

"Climbing stairs is the physically straining human way of getting up the hill. I find it inconvenient and unpleasant. Fortunately, as the guardian, I'm connected to the fire here and can come and go whenever I please," Kuroko explains.

Kagami hums in thought. "Ignoring that first bit, that tengu looks like he could easily beat you in a fight. Why isn't _he_ the guardian here?"

Kuroko sends him a look, and he can't help but feel triumphant at seeing a different expression on the youkai's normally blank face. "Ignoring _that _first bit, he technically is. This shrine was built on his mountain, and it was done so that it would have a powerful youkai to keep an eye on it. I'm more of an honorary guardian, but I do take pride in my job and title."

"So do all the shrines out there have honorary guardians too?" he asks.

"Yes. We were all assigned our roles by the same master."

"You have a master?"

"Well, I suppose 'leader' or 'captain' would probably be the more correct. This was a very long time ago. Before the miasma came, there was a powerful youkai in the north that I, and several others, answered to. He sensed that something terrible was coming and sent us out to protect the Great Shrines of the regions. We were to take over and protect the shrines only if the humans there perished or left."

He nods towards the window. "What about this one? There's still a human here."

"This is the only exception. Initially, I only spoke to Hyuuga-san about my duty, but apparently he was already working closely with Aida-san at the time, so we were introduced to each other. I was the last one to be assigned by our captain, and before I was sent away, he released me from his command. He said it was in case anything were to happen to him, then at least I wouldn't be bound by my name like the others were, which is why I'm able to work with Aida-san so freely."

Processing everything he was just told, he asks, "You're not bound to anyone or anything then?"

"Not by name, no," Kuroko answers. "But I think my captain foresaw all of this, which is why I'll trust his decision and do my best to fulfill the two missions I was given. The first is to protect the Seirin Shrine, and the second is to find a way to combat the miasma if the rest of my comrades fall to it."

"And they've all fallen?" Kagami asks. Although he's seen the miasma, he still finds it hard to believe that the fog contains any powers at all.

"Yes. Other than Seirin, the Kaijou Shrine is the one that lasted the longest, but I'm afraid it's recently fallen. That's why I went looking for help. I believe that if we hurry, we may be able to save the region from a lot of suffering. It hasn't spread completely yet, so they must still be trying to fight it somehow."

Kagami nods, sensing the urgency in the other's tone. "That's fine by me. One problem though, how do you plan on travelling with me? If you come into contact with that stuff, won't you turn as well?"

"It's a risk," Kuroko says. He hesitates over his next words. "To be honest, I'm not sure if the effects of the darkness are reversible since no one's ever been able to cleanse it. And I don't actually have any way of gaging its potency. I escaped in time, so I never witnessed the horrors first hand. Everything I know comes from the survivors and what I can see from afar."

He frowns. "Do you think there's any chance of it being reversible—or even cleansable?"

With a determined gleam in his eyes, Kuroko nods. "I do, but it'd probably be best if we run a couple of trials in the outskirts of Kaijou first. The regions all fell at different rates, there must be a reason for it—some way of combating it. Right now, I'm carrying a protective charm that Aida-san made for me. It's supposed to ward against the miasma, but I don't know how effective it is."

"That's actually a pretty good idea," he says climbing out of the water. "I'll have to think about how to go about it without exorcising you or other youkai though. By the way, those guardians your captain assigned, how strong are they?"

Without missing a beat, Kuroko answers, "Far stronger than me, if that's what you're trying to ask. Only the strongest were assigned to protect the shrines."

Letting out a sigh, he reaches for a towel. Of course all the _strong _guardians are on the other side. "I hope you have a plan of some sort then. Going head on against these guardians doesn't sound like it'd go too well for either of us. At this point, I can't tell which one of us would be easier to kill."

"Of course. I do have one request though, Kagami-kun," Kuroko says.

He arches a brow. "What is it?"

There's an unreadable look in the youkai's eyes as he says, "If it's at all avoidable, please do not kill my friends."

Kagami pauses, wondering if he should make that promise. It's one he's not averse to making, but if it becomes a matter of life and death, there's no way he'd be able to keep it, not when he has his own mission to complete. "I can't make that promise," he tells the other honestly, "but I'll try my best."

Kuroko nods. "That's all I can ask of you."

"Hey, it's dinner time," Aida calls from outside.

"Oh good, I'm starving." Quickly drying himself off and stepping out into his room, he's met with plates of smoking, charred black shapes and a bowl of ominous smelling soup with equally suspicious things floating in it. "What's this? Another test? I already said I'd help, didn't I?"

Aida frowns and looks at the dishes. "What are you talking about? It's dinner."

From behind her, one of the tengu, Hyuuga, if he remembers correctly, looks away sheepishly.

Kagami shakes his head. "Sorry, but I can't afford to be delayed or possibly die here—not when I finally made it out of that forest. Where's your kitchen? Are there still ingredients? C'mon, I'll teach you how to make something fit for humans."

* * *

With the two out of the room, Hyuuga slides his mask up and asks, "So he is the human you finally found worthy of journeying with you? He seems trustworthy enough and I can tell he's strong, but I wonder if he is strong enough to get rid of the darkness."

Kuroko shrugs. "Only time will tell. Although I still wish there was an alternative, if I had to pick a human, it would be Kagami-kun. He's as good as they come. There's raw power in him, and with a little refining, I believe we'll be unstoppable."

"I was surprised. It's rare seeing you so at ease with a human," the tengu notes.

"Really? I didn't notice." Kuroko looks down at the dishes and blinks. "Aida-san's cooking seems to have improved since the last time I've been here. It's taken on distinct shapes this time."

Hyuuga picks up the tray to dispose of the food. "I'm just glad we don't have to live off of this. Would it be okay if I throw this into your fire?"

"Not unless you want to be responsible for the death of this shrine's honorary guardian."

* * *

After dinner, they gather around the bonfire pit where Aida and the tengu are getting ready to light the fire. He still hasn't had a chance to speak to the masked figures, but they don't seem particularly interested in striking up a conversation with him. And as open-minded as he's trying to be about the situation, he can't help but be wary when there are so many youkai around.

"As promised, I will search the region for your lost brother. If he's within range and has a fire going, I should be able to find him," Kuroko says. "Can you describe him to me?"

With his heart pounding loudly in his chest, Kagami sits up a little straighter and pulls his necklace out. "His name's Himuro Tatsuya. He has black hair that goes to about here and parts like this, and there's a mole under his right eye. The last time I saw him, he was in his onmyouji garb. He has a ring like mine, but there's a chance he might not be wearing it anymore."

"He's an onmyouji as well, then? That'll make him easier to find. We don't get very many visitors from the capital here." The kindling start crackling as the fire is lit. Kuroko leans a little closer towards it and says, "I'll be back."

Kagami watches as the other disappear into the warm glow of the flame. "Won't people be surprised if he suddenly appears?" he mutters, remembering his own surprise whenever Kuroko suddenly appeared.

Aida shakes her head. "Only certain people can see him; mainly us and some children. But even then, I think he can easily appear and disappear across the region without anyone ever noticing him."

"I suppose that's true. If you put it like that, it'd be far more impressive if anyone actually notices him," he says with a laugh. "How long do you think this will take?"

She shrugs. "Your guess is as good as mine. He's searching through the entire region, I can't imagine it being something you can do quickly. By the way, are you certain your brother is in this area?"

He pulls his lips into a taut line. "The last records show him coming here. It's all I have to go on."

"But if he isn't in Seirin, then he's probably out there somewhere," Aida says, nodding towards the distance. "Even if he's an onmyouji, well, you've heard our stories."

Eyes casting down towards the ground, he gives a slow nod. "I've been thinking about that as well. If he's not here, there's a pretty good chance he's dead, right? I realize that it's a possibility, but at the very least, I have to know find out what happened to him. In the capital, we heard that trouble was brewing out here, but no one was willing to do anything about it. I should've gone after him sooner."

The miko gives him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. "You couldn't have known. The capital never bothers with us in times of peace. We can only be grateful that you're here and you agreed to help us in our plight. We'll be here, praying for your success and safety every day, right, boys?"

The tengu nod their heads but don't speak.

"Kagami-kun," a voice suddenly says.

He gives a start and turns to see Kuroko, nothing but a silhouette in front of the bonfire. "Did you find him?"

Kuroko shakes his head. "No, I even tried asking some of the youkai around here, but they haven't seen or heard of your brother. I'm sorry."

Kagami sighs and waves it off. "No, I didn't really think it'd be that easy. I guess our next stop is Kaijou then. But before that, where's the sake? I believe we have an alliance to drink to."

* * *

A/N: Here's the second chapter! Sorry for the wait! Hope everyone's coping with having to go back to school/work!

Fun fact: Riko actually knows Kiyoshi's true name because when they first met, he introduced himself by his full name and even taught her how to write it properly (while Hyuuga stood in the background face-palming).

Tengu: In Buddhism, they were disruptive demons and harbingers of war. Their image gradually softened, however, into one of protective, if still dangerous, spirits of the mountains and forests. The earliest tengu were pictured with beaks, but this feature has often been humanized as an unnaturally long nose, which today is widely considered the tengu's defining characteristic in the popular imagination. (wiki)


	3. Darkness

Chapter 3: Darkness

"Kagami-kun, are you finished?"

"Yeah, I think so. I'm pretty sure I did it right. How are you feeling? Any pain?"

Kuroko looks around the small shielded area around him and shakes his head. "No, no pain. But it's hard to tell if it's working with you standing so close. You seem to naturally repel the darkness. Maybe it'd help if you step back a little for a moment."

"Fine. Here, hold your own torch for a little while." A little reluctantly, he takes a step backwards into the miasma. Despite it never touching him, he holds his breath instinctively, afraid to breathe it in. The fog is everywhere and feels even more suffocating than the forest in Seirin. He can't imagine how anything has managed to survive in this smothering darkness. "How is it? You haven't gone crazy, right?" he asks, remembering the way Kuroko froze up when they first came into contact with the fog.

Inspecting the barrier around him, Kuroko waves his hand around in front of his face. "I feel fine, Kagami-kun. Nothing's getting in. I think it's working."

He straightens his back triumphantly and grins. "That wasn't so bad. Now to test its durability. Do you think it'll hold up against unwanted youkai?"

"You might have a chance to test it now," Kuroko says, pointing behind him. "It looks like there are some on their way here."

Cursing, Kagami runs back into the little patch of protected land. He raises his staff, ready to fight. A small swarm of youkai race towards them, ranging from insect-sized ones to ones comparable to large dogs. They charge straight into the barrier and begin attacking it, trying to get through.

He takes the opportunity to check for faults in his wards. One of the sides is starting to crack already. He tries reinforcing it, but the another side starts to give in to the endless belligerence. "It's no good. It's still not strong enough on its own. I'll have to try again later. I'm going to get rid of these guys."

"Wait, please don't kill them."

Kagami frowns at the request. "I know I said I'd try my best not to kill your friends, but this is a different story, isn't it?"

"Yes, but if you kill everything here, it'll draw the attention of even stronger youkai, and the forest will be thrown into chaos afterwards if you accidentally kill the guardian," Kuroko says, placing a hand on his arm to stop him.

Glancing upwards, he tries to recall the lessons imparted onto him back in the capital, usually by angry, older men. He's never been good at memorizing things, that's always been more Tatsuya's strength than his. "I'm gonna need a refresher on that youkai hierarchy stuff. You know running won't always be an option, right?"

"I understand that."

He holds his frown for a moment longer before letting out a sigh and saying, "We should probably get out of here while it's still holding up."

"That's a good idea, but in case you haven't noticed, we're surrounded. Are you going to use a shikigami, Kagami-kun?" Kuroko asks.

He shakes his head. "Nope, I don't have any."

"That's rather unusual for an onmyouji, isn't it?"

Kagami shrugs. "That's another thing we can talk about later. Why don't you make a list? There's not much either of us can do about it now, so it looks like I'll just have to force my way out. I'll do my best not to kill any of them, any objections?"

Kuroko shakes his head. "Please be careful."

With a spell, he blasts the youkai away and the two make a break for it. "You think you can make it to that tree over there?" Kagami asks, pointing. "If you collapse, I'm not carrying you."

"Please don't look down on me. I'm perfectly capable of running short distances," Kuroko answers, face strained in concentration. "That said, I'm going to stop talking now."

He lets out an amused snort but decides to save the teasing for when they get to somewhere safer.

* * *

"I'm almost out of talisman. Let's find somewhere to camp and call it a day. I think I've just about got it anyway," Kagami says after their fifth try.

Kuroko's panting heavily and looking paler than usual. Out of breath and unable to form words, he nods in agreement.

The two of them continue down the road until they stumble upon an abandoned hut. With the sun already setting, they exchange looks and decide to approach it.

On the way there, Kagami suddenly stops and raises a hand. "There's a barrier around this place," he says. He takes a few steps forward and looks around, checking for traps and hazards. Satisfied with his initial assessment, he looks back and waves the torch. "Now you try coming through using the smoke."

For that suggestion, he gets a look from Kuroko. "Is it safe?"

Kagami shrugs. "Probably. The worst that could happen is you get stuck over there while I'm over here."

With a nod, Kuroko closes for a moment before opening them again and shaking his head. "I can feel where I'm supposed to go, but I can't get to it."

"Right, then I guess we'll have to find the charms and do something about them." Furrowing his brows, he begins looking around for the barrier's source of power. Eventually, he finds a tree with symbols and words etched into it. Tracing the carvings with a finger, Kagami frowns. "Hang on, let me try to tweak this to let you in, that way, we can keep using this barrier. I'll have to cleanse the place too in case there are spirits here."

He shudders at the thought.

"I didn't know you could use another person's barriers."

"It's only sometimes. If you can figure out the components, it's not so bad. Besides, I normally use something similar to this. Like, this here is to construct the barrier. It specifies the type and duration and all that stuff," he explains, pointing at the symbol with the small knife he pulled out. "And here, it tells you what the barrier blocks, which is…"

"Youkai," Kuroko says. "It says youkai."

Kagami pauses for a moment then perks up. "Oh, right! So _that's _how you write it!"

Kuroko turns and stares at him with an intensity he's never known before. "Kagami-kun, do you mean to say that your barriers earlier didn't work because you forgot how to write the word 'youkai'?"

He averts his gaze and swallows hard. "No? I didn't forget both words, just part of the second one. At least I got the darkness part right!" When the glare intensifies, he does his best to defend himself, "Look, reading and writing have never been my strengths, okay? They tried to teach me, but I always forget. There are so many different words and you have to remember the different characters and strokes. Normally, you can channel your intentions into your wards and that'd be good enough."

When Kuroko merely continues watching him with an unimpressed expression on his face, Kagami adds, "Well, it's not like anyone ever asked me for help in academic matters. Besides, you're the one who came to me, and it's not like you picked me for my brains, right?"

Raising a hand to pacify him, Kuroko finally relents and says, "I didn't mean to make it seem like such a big deal. I was just thinking about how much running we could've avoided today."

"Yes, but you could use the training?" he tries with a shrug.

Kuroko's eyes flash and he immediately realizes he said the wrong thing. "And you could use some writing exercises, Kagami-kun."

Kagami can feel sweat starting to form as he tries to feign ignorance. "I don't know what you mean. Anyway, first things first, hurry up and get in here before the other youkai notice. I think I got it right."

"After everything I just learned, that's not very reassuring."

He rolls his eyes. "I'm sure I got it right, okay?"

"You mean you think you wrote my name correctly?" Kuroko asks.

"You're never going to let this go, are you? For your information, I didn't need to write your name for this, so get in here already," he grumbles.

Stepping past the barrier, Kuroko looks around. "That's strange, I thought this place was warded but it's exactly the same as outside."

Kagami nods. "It is, but it's not that simple. The last guy only blocked youkai from getting in, not the darkness. And since it's already in here, I can't just seal the place off or the stuff trapped inside won't be able to get out either."

"Why can't you just purify it?"

"It'd be easier to push it out than to purify it, and it'd take less energy too. Purification would work best at the source. Here, take this and stand behind something," he says, passing Kuroko the torch. Then, cracking his knuckles, he grins. "It's about to get a little windy."

When he finally finishes clearing the miasma from the area with his conjured winds, Kuroko steps back out with a smoking torch. "Kagami-kun, you blew the torch out."

He feels a jolt of panic at the thought of being left alone in such a desolate place. "My bad, hold on, just pass it here and I'll relight it. You're not gonna disappear on me, are you?"

"Not as long as there's enough smoke," the other reassures him.

Conjuring a small ball of flame in his hand, he relights the torch and nods towards the wards in the trees. "This is a pretty powerful spell. I wonder what happened to the caster."

"Maybe you'll find something at the house," Kuroko says pointing at the entrance to the hut. "Why don't we go check it out?"

Kagami pulls his lips into a taut line. "Right. That deserted, worn down looking place. It looked more…intact from afar."

Not wasting any time, Kuroko makes his way forward, towards the building. "You sure are a strange onmyouji, Kagami-kun. You can face hordes of youkai without flinching, but you can't inspect an abandoned house alone."

"It's different," he protests, following the other. "With youkai, at least I can see what I'm up against."

"You can see spirits too."

"Yeah, but you can't fight them, not really. I'm mostly used to solving problems that can be handled physically, okay? If a roof collapses, you can fix it. If someone picks a fight with you, you can fight back. When spirits are angry, you cleanse the place, say a prayer, and hope for the best. What's worse is when they attach themselves onto a person without that person ever knowing it," he rants, giving himself goosebumps.

Kuroko studies his reaction and asks, "I take it there are a lot of angry spirits in the capital?"

"Unfortunately. They're all over the place," Kagami mutters. Having grown up in a small village, he remembers the first time he came face to face with a spirit when he arrived in the city—there was a lot of screaming and tears and demands to be taken home.

The two of them walk over only to find a skeleton sprawled on the floor. Its clothes now in tatters and prayer beads all over the place. Some of its bones have been lost, possibly scattered by scavengers, and embedded in the skull was a very human axe.

"Oh," Kuroko says, looking down at the remains. "I guess youkai were the least of their problems here."

* * *

After burying the bones and cleansing the house, the two start a larger campfire and finally allow themselves to relax a little.

"How's the charm holding up?" Kagami asks, pouring water into a shallow bowl and mixing in ink powder.

Kuroko takes the charm Aida gave him and shows the other. The paper had become partially black as though dotted with ink and was beginning to crinkle and dry out. "It partially worked, but if I wasn't standing so close to you, it wouldn't have lasted, and it definitely won't survive another day."

Studying the talisman, Kagami rubs the back of his neck in thought. "That's not looking good, hmm? I'll make you a better one for tomorrow. What do you mean partially, though?"

"I could feel it. When we first entered this forest, I could feel the darkness." Kuroko looks down, recalling the sensation. It sends chills down his spine.

Curious, he asks, "What was it like?"

"Hopeless," Kuroko says. "Everything felt hopeless."

Not wanting to remind the other of his experience, Kagami clears his throat and changes the topic. "So remind me again how the youkai hierarchy works again. It won't come as a surprise to you, but those kinds of situations never arose in the capital."

"It's not too complicated. There are powerful youkai that protect certain parts of an area, like a forest, a mountain, or a lake. Then there are even stronger ones that protect a region, so on and so forth. Protectors of an area usually groom their own successors, so if you kill one off, it will most definitely result in a lot of commotion for the land," Kuroko explains.

"With so many protectors and so many layers of defense, I'm surprised it was overcome so easily," Kagami says, dipping his brush into the newly made ink. "Most of the youkai back in the forest weren't exactly weak."

"Kaijou is known for its strong youkai just like how Seirin is known for its shy ones. I don't know if any of that contributed to how long it lasted though. We don't have any defenses that will hold up against this darkness. Even your charms will wither away."

"Wouldn't that mean even shikigami would be at risk?" he asks. "The way I see it, the influence could go either way. Either an onmyouji could keep their shikigami safe, or the shikigami might end up infecting the onmyouji with the darkness if they're not strong enough."

Kuroko blinks. "I never really thought about it that way, but I suppose it's a possibility. I wasn't expecting that level of insight from you, Kagami-kun."

He glares at the other. "Oi, what's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. But speaking of which, you said you didn't have any shikigami to your name earlier. Why is that?"

"I don't know. It just never worked out. The summoning's iffy at best, and whenever I do get something, it's usually ridiculously big and aggressive. My mentor said it's because I channel too much energy into the summon. Even when I try to form a contract with whatever I manage to call out, it ends up a mess too since it forms an open channel between us."

"You sound dangerous."

"Yeah, well, that's why I decided to rely on my own strength to get things done. Am I writing this right?" he asks, showing the other his new talisman.

"That looks right, I think. Your penmanship is terrible. What about paper shikigami?" Kuroko asks.

Kagami holds up his hands and wiggles his fingers. "I'm not very good at folding them. And people always notice them right away, so they're only good for delivering messages."

"While I feel like I shouldn't be surprised, I still am," says Kuroko, sounding more amused than surprised.

He scoffs and continues concentrating on his task at hand. "It's nothing I haven't heard before. Back at the capital, it was usually just me, Tatsuya, and Alex, our mentor. We mostly dealt with the exorcists and barriers instead of the calendars and fortune-telling stuff."

Kuroko cocks his head slightly to the side. "Alex? That's an unusual name."

"Yeah, she's not from around here, but she's also the strongest exorcist we have. Alex is the one that found me in my village and took me to the capital. She's got a bit of a problem with nudity though—but I think it's just her rather than her background."

"Oh, is she uncomfortable with seeing people nude?"

Throwing his head back, he lets out a laugh. "I wish. If anything, she's too comfortable with it. I can't tell you how many times I had to wake up to her sprawled out next to me and how many misunderstandings it's caused." He shakes his head. "Never mind that though. We should probably focus on the here and now. What's the guardian of Kaijou Shrine like?"

Kuroko looks over. "Kise-kun? He's very social, though sometimes it can be a little excessive, and he has a great crying face. As far as I know, he doesn't have anything against humans. Well, either way, he's probably the easiest one to get along with. I think you'll like him."

"You say that as if a lot of youkai have grudges against people," Kagami mutters. He pauses. "Wait, do they?"

"A fair number do. I can't imagine it being very different from humans being angry over losing loved ones to youkai attacks," the other explains.

He nods and crosses his arms in understanding. "If you put it that way, I guess it makes sense. Do _you _have a grudge I should know about?"

"I'm working with you, aren't I?" Kuroko returns.

Kagami frowns for a moment before thinking better of prying and shrugs it off. "As long as you don't stab me in the back, that's good enough for me," he says decisively, throwing more kindling into the fire.

Light blue eyes study him closely. "You're very trusting, Kagami-kun."

"Yeah, well, you're the only other sane person in the region, so what choice do I have?"

* * *

It takes them a couple of days, but eventually, they make it to Kaijou Shrine. At the bottom of the hill, the two of them look up to see the shrine completely hidden by the thick layer of miasma swirling around it. Try as he may, he can't sense anything through the darkness and the thought that there could be a swarm of youkai waiting for them makes him uneasy. "How many youkai do you think are lurking up there?"

Kuroko follows his gaze upwards. "I can't say for sure. Kise-kun's definitely there. There's no questioning that. He'd never leave his post unguarded. If it's like Seirin Shrine, then there might be tengu up there with him. I don't think there'll be any others though. Even though it's like this, youkai instinctively stay away from shrines."

Nodding, he takes a deep breath. "That's good to know. If it's just that, then maybe we'll survive after all. I can set up barriers right away to block any attacks they might throw at us. The most important thing is to locate the source of all this stuff and get rid of it somehow. Once that's out of the way, if we're lucky, and if you're right, then things will calm down again around here."

"That sounds like a good plan. When we get to the shrine, it should be easy to locate the source. All this darkness must be coming from somewhere."

Looking at all the flights of stairs they'll have to climb up, Kagami glances over at Kuroko and frowns. "But then again, before we can get to any of that, I feel like climbing these will put us at a huge disadvantage. By the time we get to the top, we'll be half dead—or, in your case, completely dead."

"I don't know what you mean. This doesn't seem so bad," Kuroko says as he stiffly begins climbing up.

"You look like you're ready to collapse already!" he shouts in disbelief as sweat drips off the youkai's face.

Taking a couple of steps further up, Kuroko huffs, "I'm fine."

Kagami runs a hand through his hair and furrows his brows when he notices the other quivering ever so slightly. "Are your legs _shaking_? Look, I know you said you'd climb the stairs with me next time and I appreciate it, but I change my mind. I'll climb these stairs, okay? Just come back out from wherever you go when I get closer to the top. You can climb stairs with me next time."

He has to stifle a sigh at the thought of next time.

Kuroko glances back. "Are you sure, Kagami-kun?"

"Yes! When we get to the top, you'll be more useful alive," he pauses, "I'm assuming."

"You're so rude," the youkai complains, but he seems grateful at being given leave. "I'll warn you if I sense any movement nearby."

"Just letting you know now, if I get thrown off these stairs, I'm calling it a day," Kagami tells the now empty spot where Kuroko was a moment ago.

Suddenly, a voice speaks up from beside him, "Probably best not to announce that to the world. I didn't know you were so easily deterred."

He lets out a yelp and jumps back, glad he hadn't started his climb yet. Hovering above him in the smoke are two large blue eyes, just watching him. "Kuroko? Is that you?"

The eyes continue watching him. "Yes, who else could it be? I told you before that I would be your shadow. It wouldn't be very partner-like of me to leave you on your own when we're so close to danger."

"You mean you could've done this the entire time?"

"That's right. I'm an enenra, Kagami-kun, I'm made from smoke. It's only natural I'd be able to manipulate it like this. But I thought you'd be more comfortable if I had a more human-looking form. You did mention your dislike for spirits and such."

"As opposed to a floating pair of eyes? I'm definitely more comfortable with your other form. Would you mind blinking every now and then?" He looks around the smoke and asks, "Where even is your voice coming from?"

Kuroko blinks slowly as requested. "That's not important right now. There's something approaching us from behind."

Kagami turns around only to see youkai appearing in the distance. He grits his teeth and tightens his grip on the torch. "Hold on tight—or, something. I'm gonna make a run for it."

Going up two steps at a time towards the swirling darkness, he knows he's going to regret his decision by the time he gets to the top. Unable to crane his head to look back, he focuses on trying to reach the top. Even as his lungs begin to burn, he keeps going.

Kuroko stays silent, wherever he is.

When he finally gets near the top, he allows himself to stop. He collapses onto his knees and tries to catch his breath. His lungs feel like they're on fire and his legs have gone numb. "Are they…behind us?" he asks, panting, trying to put out the burning sensation in his throat.

"No, it seems that even they can't get this close to the darkness. We're safe for now," Kuroko says from beside him, having transformed back into his human form. "Are you alright?"

"I will be. What about you?" He rolls onto his back and stretches his arms out in attempt to improve his respiration. "Should I…clear some of this for…you?" he asks, waving his finger around at the miasma around them.

"I'm fine, Kagami-kun. Here, have some water. I can sense Kise-kun and others now, but none of them seem to be moving."

It takes a minute for the burning sensation to recede. He gets back onto his feet and wipes the sweat off his face. "That was a good warm up. We should hurry up and make sure your friends are alright. You feel up to climbing the rest of these stairs with me?"

A faint smile flickers across Kuroko's face. "You can count on me."

When they get closer to the top, he tries to pick out the energy signals that Kuroko had felt as 'Kise-kun', but all he can feel is the miasma. "Are you sure they're all up there? I can't pick them out from all this darkness."

Kuroko nods, a little winded from the climb. "The strongest energy belongs to Kise-kun. He still hasn't moved. I wonder if there's something stopping him."

"The strongest stationary energy? But that would be…" he trails off as the top of the stairs plateaus out and gives way to the shrine. Instinctively, he readies his talismans and staff. The air feels stagnant despite the darkness swirling around, shrouding the temple and buildings, hiding them from view.

And in the middle of it all is a lone figure, unmoving and silent.

It lifts its head.

"…Kuroko…cchi?"

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the slow update! This semester's turning out to be more hectic than previously expected. I'll try to get the next chapter up faster. Next up: Kise!


	4. Kaijou

Chapter 4: Kaijou

"Kurokocchi?" the voice asks.

Kuroko takes a step forward. "Kise-kun, we're here to help you. Are you alright?"

Faintly, he can make out golden eyes watching them from the vortex of the darkness.

"…help…me?"

Those eyes turn to him questioningly.

"This is Kagami-kun, he's an onmyouji—"

Something shifts in the air. "An onmyouji? Why? Did _he_ send you?"

"He?" Kuroko asks. "I don't know who you're talking about. We're here to help."

"Don't lie to me! There's only one reason why you'd bring an onmyouji here! And I refuse! I don't want to go yet!" The figure leaps back and out of instinct, Kagami pulls Kuroko closer to him and drawing a barrier around them.

Worried for his friend, Kuroko tries to pull away. "Wait, Kagami-kun, what are you doing? Kise-kun wouldn't…"

"Stop struggling and stay close to me. Haven't you noticed yet?" Kagami says, tightening his grip on the other's arm. "All this darkness is coming from him. _He's_ the source."

Kuroko doesn't tear his eyes away from his friend. "But, how's that possible?"

"I don't know. We can figure that out later, for now, we have to stop him from moving…" he trails off when the darkness spreads around them, unveiling the figure in the middle. He can feel his blood run cold at the sight of the youkai. "Oi, Kuroko, you never told me your friend was a d-d-d—"

His stuttering seems to snap Kuroko from his trance. "A dog? Did I never mention that Kise-kun was an inugami?"

"No, you didn't! I'd definitely remember if you did, and I definitely wouldn't have come up here if you did! All you had to say about him was his crying face," he protests, the fear making him both bold and weak in the knees at the same time.

"It must've slipped my mind," Kuroko says. "I didn't know you were afraid of dogs, Kagami-kun. Kise-kun's normally very friendly."

Kagami furrows his brows and turns to look at the large, monstrous dog with its glowing golden eyes. From his experience and childhood trauma, raised hackles, flattened ears, and bared teeth weren't the signs of a friendly dog. "Why don't you try telling me that again when he's _not _looking all angry and _emitting darkness from his body_?"

"I can't go yet. I won't. I'm still strong. I can still be useful," Kise mutters, his breathing ragged. He shakes his head and lets out a snarl as though fighting with itself. "I won't be thrown away like this," he lunges towards them, "not when I can still fight!"

"Kagami-kun, don't move," Kuroko orders and vanishes.

"Wait, what—" A moment later, he's surrounded by a screen of smoke.

"There are other youkai over by the main shrine. It's the one with the caved roof to your left," Kuroko's voice says. "I'll make sure Kise-kun doesn't get to you."

"Kurokocchi, don't get in my way!" the inugami growls. "I don't want to fight you, but I won't let anyone stop me, even if it's you!"

Running towards the fallen shrine as instructed, Kagami tries to come up with a way to stop Kise without exorcising him.

"Kise-kun, please stop! We're not here to fight you," Kuroko tries.

The inugami stops for a moment, his ears raised. "I can hear you, onmyouji. Not even Kurokocchi's misdirection can help you now."

Kagami comes to halt and puts up a shield just in time to fend against the attack. Pushed back by the force of the impact, he watches his shield crumble away, leaving nothing between him and the inugami. Kise lunges forward and he jumps back and dodges to the right, pulling his staff out.

Smoke surrounds him again. "Don't move, Kagami-kun. This is the only way I can direct Kise-kun's attacks away. He doesn't seem to be able to transform into his other forms, but this one's just as dangerous. I don't think there's anything we can do about the other youkai in the shrine for now. Kise-kun doesn't seem to want us going near them."

He nods and digs through the talismans he had prepared for today, hoping for a plan to come to him. For a moment, he considers putting up barriers, but then he remembers how the inugami destroyed his shield earlier. Pausing at the wards, he looks around at the thick layer of smoke all around him.

"Kurokocchi, you can't hide him forever," Kise says, pacing, his claws scratching against the inlaid stones. "Your fuel will run out soon enough."

Kagami looks down at the torch on the ground, completely alit. "Kuroko, can you cover this whole place in smoke?" he asks quickly, dodging to the side to avoid another attack.

From the smoke, two large blue eyes appear, giving him a start. "I could, but I would need more fuel to do it. Please don't burn down the shrine."

Rolling his eyes, he dismisses the idea from his head and looks around for something else to set on fire. He perks up when he suddenly remembers the bonfire pit that every Great Shrine is supposed to have. It sounds like a good place to start; now all he has to do is figure out where it is and how to light it. Casting a spell might give his plan away and the wind caused by the swirling darkness is enough to smother any smaller flame.

Out of the corner of his eye, Kagami notices the torch again and grins. Bending down and picking up the blazing piece of wood, he dashes off to one side, out of the smoke.

Golden eyes immediately hone in on him and the inugami charges forward. With a talisman ready in one hand, he looks around for the bonfire pit. Catching a glimpse of it in front of the main shrine, Kagami throws the torch at it with all his might just as Kise shatters his shield again. The two of them both get blown back by the impact and it leaves his arm muscles searing with pain from the strain.

Kuroko immediately shields him again, his eyes hovering.

Holding his breath, Kagami waits to see if his gamble paid off.

"Unexpectedly, you have really good aim, Kagami-kun," Kuroko tells him.

He grins as he watches the smoke thicken around him. Holding up his wards, he gestures for Kuroko to protect them. The pair of eyes bob slightly. Kagami takes it as a nod and puts one on stone lamp behind him. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he readies his next one and makes a run for it.

Behind him, Kise's form suddenly appears only to be swallowed by the smoke.

"Where are you going, onmyouji!?"

Kagami swallows hard, trying his best not to think about the monstrous dog chasing him. It's like all his worst nightmares come true. He sets another ward without stopping and continues his lap around the shrine. Twice, he gets caught by Kise. By the second time, his left arm's gone numb and refuses to listen anymore.

Up ahead, he sees the gate he had started at and exhales in relief.

Setting one last ward in place, he stops and activates them with a quick spell. He watches as a barrier gets constructed, trapping the darkness within. Kise lets out a snarl and throws himself at the barrier walls. "I won't go! I won't!"

He frowns when he sees cracks beginning to form from the barrage of attacks, despite it being one of the strongest barriers in his arsenal already. Fortifying the barrier with a spell to buy more time, he takes a deep breath to steady himself and asks, "Ready, Kuroko?"

"Kise-kun will be alright, won't he?" Kuroko asks, still spread out around the shrine, protecting the talismans.

"This is our best shot at helping him," he says, not wanting to make any promises. "I'll purify the darkness and its source. If he hasn't been completely taken over by it, then the two should separate and only the bad stuff should be destroyed. I feel like I can't stress the world 'should' enough here though."

Kuroko hesitates for a moment. "Let's do this. I trust your judgment, Kagami-kun. And I believe in Kise-kun."

Kagami nods and begins his incantation.

The inugami redoubles his efforts, ramming into the walls containing him, creating more cracks in the barrier. But before he can break through, as the spell progresses, Kise begins writhing. Eventually, he stops attacking and curls up on the ground, ears flattened, and claws digging into the ground from pain.

"Why?" the inugami whimpers. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"It'll be over soon. You're going to be fine, Kise-kun," Kuroko tries to reassure the other.

"But, why? Why do I have to go? Why did he send me away? I wanted to stay by his side. I want to see him. Everyone always leaves me. I don't understand. Did I do something bad? I'm good enough, aren't I? I'm strong, aren't I? It's not fair. I can be good. Just let me show you. Please, don't make me go away."

"I think the darkness is talking through him," Kuroko tells Kagami. "Kise-kun, is this what you've been carrying inside you all this time?"

"I want to live. I just want to live…but if I'm going to die, I want it to be by his hands and his voice."

Kagami continues his spell. There's a dim glow as the inugami shifts into his human form.

"…master? It hurts, master. I'm scared. Why did you create me? I don't want to live and die on your whim. I didn't ask for this. I'm good enough. I'm good enough, so let me live." On his side, Kise curls up tighter, his features tight with pain. "It hurts. It hurts, it hurts, it hurts. Everyone is leaving. Why? Why? I…I…"

"Kise-kun!" Kuroko shouts, appearing by the inugami's side. "No one's leaving you! You're more than good enough, so come back to us!"

Finishing the incantation, a large gust of wind blows past him. Kagami shields his eyes from the flying debris and when he opens them again, he finds the shrine clear of both smoke and darkness. In the middle of his barrier, he finds Kuroko kneeling by an unfamiliar blonde's side. The stranger would've looked mostly human if not for his dog-like ears and tail.

"Is that him? Did it work?" he asks tentatively.

Kuroko turns to him, eyes bright. "I think you did it, Kagami-kun. I think you saved Kise-kun. And look, Kaijou Shrine's cleared up."

Exhausted and relieved, Kagami plops onto the ground and lets out a loud sigh. "I can't believe we survived that. Why can't all the guardians just be like you? I can't feel my arms anymore."

"Kise!?" a voice suddenly emerges from the main shrine. "Hey, you bastards, what'd you do to our shrine's dog!?"

The two of them turn to see tengu flying towards them, ready to attack. Too exhausted to fight back Kagami waves at Kuroko and mutters, "I'm not dealing with the angry owners."

"That's alright. I can take care of this," Kuroko says, getting up to stop the youkai. "Kise-kun's fine. He's still breathing. He should wake up in a little while."

The head tengu frowns. "You know Kise?"

"Yes, we're friends. My name is Kuroko. I'm from the Seirin Shrine. That's Kagami-kun, an onmyouji."

"Oh," the tengu says, "could you be 'Kurokocchi'? Kise never shuts up about you."

Kuroko nods. "Most likely. That sounds very like him."

"I'm Kasamatsu. This is my mountain," the tengu introduces himself. "The two heading over this way are Moriyama and Hayakawa."

"Can you tell us what happened, Kasamatsu-san? Why did Kaijou suddenly fall?" Kuroko asks.

Kasamatsu rubs the back of his neck and shakes his head. "It's most likely because of that," he says, pointing to the main shrine. "That shrine houses the remains of a great priest who once lived here. We were completely fine until a storm caused the roof to cave in. The barrier he erected must've been damaged and broken because of that."

"The shrine still seems to have kept you safe from the darkness though," Kagami points out.

"Powel rike that doesn't simpry disappeal aftel death!" Hayakawa shouts. "Especiarry not gleat men rike him!"

"No one can understand what you're saying when you speak so fast, you idiot!" Kasamatsu scolds, knocking the other tengu upside the head.

Hayakawa rubs his head ruefully and apologizes, "Solly, I'm just excited to be flee aftel being stuck in thele fol so rong!"

"Moriyama, do something about him!"

There's a shrug. "Not really feeling the motivation to when it's two guys involved," Moriyama says nonchalantly. Instead he turns to Kuroko and asks, "Say, never mind them, are there cute girls in Seirin?"

"Why don't you go there and never come back!?" Kasamatsu shouts. Finally snapping and shoving the two away, he points at the shrine. "If you two have time to fool around, then you can start on the repairs until Kise wakes up!"

Kagami and Kuroko exchange glances with one another as the tengu squawk and squabble among themselves. Eventually, Kasamatsu gets the upper hand the chases the other two away.

"Kaijou Shrine seems like a very lively place," Kuroko says.

Rolling his eyes, Kasamatsu heaves the sigh of one who has had to endure much suffering. "Sorry about them. We've been cooped up in that place since this whole thing started. Kise wouldn't let us out."

"That explains why he was trying to keep us away from there," Kuroko notes. "He was probably trying to protect you even while he was possessed by the darkness."

"I guess that means either Kise managed to fight the darkness off to some extent, or that it doesn't have full control over the more powerful youkai," Kagami says. "I don't know if that's a good or bad thing."

Kuroko blinks. "Why would it be a bad thing?"

"Because it means they get to keep their intelligence," he explains. "Remember how Kise waited until he could pinpoint my location to attack? None of the other youkai we faced would've been able to even think that far. It just makes our job that much harder."

"That's true. You have a good point, but I'm still glad to know that it was still Kise-kun inside."

"So what are you doing so far from Seirin?" Kasamatsu asks. "Surely, you didn't just come for a visit. Wait, are you on an epic journey to purge the land of evil?"

Kagami makes a face at that. "Is that a code for something, or is that just a phrase everyone learns here?"

Before his question could be answered, there's a groan and they all look down to see Kise stirring. Golden eyes flutter open and the inugami sits up, cradling his head. "Everything hurts…" Then, suddenly, his eyes widen and he sits up. "Senpai!? Kurokocchi!? Is everyone alright?"

Glancing over, Kagami sees for the first time how handsome the inugami is. He quickly recalls a mental image of the beast that attacked him earlier to remind himself that looks can be deceiving when it comes to youkai—because apparently even the most beautiful creatures can turn into angry gigantic dogs.

"Everyone's fine, Kise-kun," Kuroko answers.

Eyes watering, Kise wraps his arms around the enenra and holds him tight. "Thank goodness! I really didn't want to fight you! I was so worried you'd gotten hurt because of me, Kurokocchi!"

Kasamatsu smacks the inugami on the head. "Worry about yourself first, you idiot dog! You were completely possessed and nearly got exorcised!"

Kise looks up. "Kasamatsu-senpai…where are the others? Are they alright? This guy," he says, glancing warily over at Kagami, "he's not here to exorcise me?"

"Would you still be sitting here if I was?" Kagami mutters under his breath.

Ears perking, Kise huffs. "Yes! Kurokocchi totally could've stopped you and beaten you up because he's the best! Am I right, Kurokocchi?"

Instead of answering, Kuroko sighs, "…Kise-kun, this is getting uncomfortable. Can you let me go now?"

"So mean! You're so cold even though we haven't seen each other in so long!"

"Really? It didn't seem that long," Kuroko says, clearly enjoying himself.

Fat tears start rolling down Kise's face. "But I missed you so much…"

Kuroko almost smiles. "Your crying face is still the same as ever, Kise-kun."

Kagami arches a brow at the sudden emergence of Kuroko's sadistic side.

But to be fair, it _was _a very nice crying face.

"Hey, onmyouji," Kasamatsu starts.

"The name's Kagami. Kagami Taiga," he replies automatically.

"Excuse me. Then, Kagami," the tengu corrects himself, "is it safe for us to leave this barrier?"

He looks around the shrine and nods. "It should be fine if you stay nearby. But the miasma hasn't cleared away anywhere else, so it'd probably be safer if you waited until I fortify the shrine."

"Will the darkness clear up on its own?" Kise asks.

"It should. With the source gone, things should gradually turn back to normal. How did it manage to get inside you anyway?" Kagami asks.

Looking up in thought, Kise shakes his head. "I'm not sure. After the storm, the main shrine's roof caved in. I was going on patrol as usual when I could suddenly feel it." He raises a hand to his heart. "I couldn't do anything about it, and there was this voice—_my_ voice saying everything I didn't want to hear. It made me really angry, but I think it was more towards myself."

Kasamatsu arches a brow. "Hmm? What kind of things did you hear?"

Curling his tail around himself, the inugami tells them, "It was just mostly my own voice saying 'You're not wanted. You're not wanted. You're not wanted,' over and over again."

The two of them exchange looks, remembering the inugami's words from earlier. Kuroko opens his mouth to, no doubt, reassure the other, but Kasamtasu beats him to it. "And you believed it? Of course you're wanted, you idiot. You're the Kaijou Inugami, aren't you?"

Kise's eyes widen. "Is that really what I'm known as, senpai?"

"I think it has a nice ring to it," Kuroko says.

Kagami frowns. "By that, you mean it sounds horrifying."

"Only to you, Kagami-kun."

"The Kaijou Inugami…" Kise's lips curl into a light smile. "I rather like the sound of that, actually."

* * *

Later in the day, when he finally feels like he's regained enough energy to set up the barrier for Kaijou Shrine, Kagami heaves himself up and announces, "I'll go set up the wards. Where do you want them?"

Kasamatsu thinks for a moment. "I think I know a good place to start. C'mon, I can take you."

"Kagami-kun, do you want me to come with you?" Kuroko asks.

He shakes his head. "It's alright. You just stay here and catch up with your friend or something."

Left alone with Kise, Kuroko glances over. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"It has," the inugami agrees. "You're looking well though. I'm glad."

"And you? How are you?"

"Right now? A little sore, a little tired, nothing a little sleep won't fix."

"The Kaijou Inugami, huh? I take it you like it here?"

"Yeah, I like it here a lot! The scenery is beautiful! If you look down there, you can see the ocean! Did you know? I've never seen the ocean before. Everyone's really great here too! Kasamatsu-senpai's always fussing over me and the other two are always up to something. It's fun being here. It's a very…warm place. Out of all the Great Shrines, I'm glad this is the one I got sent to."

A little guiltily, Kuroko lowers his gaze and apologizes, "I'm sorry we left you all alone here, Kise-kun."

Kise smiles and shakes his head. "Please forget what I said earlier, Kurokocchi. It was probably just trauma from way before. I miss you guys all the time, but I understand why we have to do this. And like I said, the company here is great."

"That's really good to hear," Kuroko says. "If you're ever done with being the Kaijou Inugami, you know we'd take you back in a heartbeat, right?"

"Kurokocchi, I feel so loved right now."

"That wasn't my intention," he reassures the other.

"So mean!"

There's a pause before Kuroko mentions carefully, "You know, _he's _the one who insisted you come here."

Pausing, instead of commenting, Kise asks, "Have you heard from him at all? From any of them?"

"No. All of their regions have been taken over by darkness. I've had no way of contacting them."

"Then, are you going to go and help them like you helped me?"

Kuroko nods. "That's what I'm hoping to achieve with Kagami-kun's help, yes. The plan is to go to Touou next."

"Can I come with you?"

He turns around and asks, "Are you sure that's a good idea, Kise-kun?"

Kise frowns. "I'm a better fighter than that onmyouji! I'm strong! You know I'd be useful!"

"That's not the problem. There's no questioning your abilities. I'm worried because it'd be especially dangerous for you, that's all."

"That might be true, but I want to see them—to see _him_. I may understand his reasons, but I want to hear it straight from his mouth," Kise says. "And I want to help them just as much as you do, so please let me come, Kurokocchi."

Seeing the determination in the other's eyes, Kuroko's shoulders sag in both defeat and relief. "I understand, Kise-kun. Please lend us your support."

* * *

"So you're going around and looking for your brother?" Kasamatsu asks, stoking the fire. Night has fallen and they've all gathered around the bonfire. "You two must be close if you're willing to do so much just to have Kuroko look for him."

Kagami rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. "We are—or, were. To be honest, we didn't exactly leave on the best terms, but I can deal with that when I find him." He thinks back to the way they parts ways—to the hurt and anger in Tatsuya's eyes.

Kise arches a brow. "How do you know for sure that you'll find him?"

"I don't," he answers honestly, "but I can't go back to the capital until I've given it my all and searched every region. If, by the end of it all, he really doesn't want to be found then…I guess I'll just have to accept that. That's what I've decided, anyway."

"Well, your search is going to save a lot of people if you keep this up. By the time you're done, I wouldn't be surprised if everyone knew your name," Kasamatsu says. He steps back and looks at the flames. "That should be enough for you, right, Kuroko?"

Kuroko nods. "Yes. This will do nicely, thank you."

"Be careful," Kagami tells him. "There's still a lot of miasma around. How's the charm holding up? Should I make you another one before you go?"

Pulling out the charm, which looks surprisingly intact and whole, Kuroko shakes his head. "Your charm is holding up very well, Kagami-kun. It will most likely last until I'm finished. If not, I'll come straight back here." He walks up to the bonfire. "I'll be off, then."

Moriyama grins and sidles up to Kagami. "Once everyone knows your name, be a friend and introduce me to some cute girls, okay? Say, what are the girls like in the capital?"

"You'le compretery missing the point of his stoly, Moliyama!" Hayakawa yells. "His passionate sealch for his blothel has got me arr filed up!"

"Nobody understands you! Speak properly! And you! Stop talking about girls! That's not related to our conversation! Go back to your own mountain for that kind of stuff!" Kasamatsu yells back, shoving the two away. "Kise, stop sitting around and help me!"

"But I kind of have a problem right now, senpai," Kise says.

Kasamatsu frowns. "What is it?"

Holding two brushes in his hand, the inugami turns to him with a dead serious look on his face and asks, "Which one do you think I should bring with me? This one's better, but it's also more delicate, so I'd have to be extra careful while travelling with it. This one's sturdy, but it doesn't feel as silky after and I want to look my best, you know?"

"No, I don't know! And I don't care! You're all idiots!" the tengu snaps.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter! Kasamatsu's still Kise's senpai because he's older and he's been at the shrine longer. Let's leave off on a brighter note for this chapter, yeah? Enjoy!

Inugami: Japanese folklore describes Inugami as zoomorphic or anthropomorphic, dog-like beings, often similar to werewolves (wiki). (Note: If you're curious about the conjuring of an inugami, wiki provides a very vivid description of the process which also includes animal death.)


	5. Detour

Chapter 5: Detour

At the crack of dawn the next day, Kagami's still sound asleep when the door slides open. Sensing a presence nearby, he wakes from his slumber and cracks an eye open to scan the room. Much to his surprise, what he sees is a tongue and a row of pointy, white teeth.

There's panting on his face and he can feel a panicked scream rising from the back of his throat as he opens both of his eyes.

Hovering over him is a large, yellow dog wagging its tail and panting.

Kagami holds his breath and averts his gaze, waiting for the dog to do _something_.

As though sensing his anticipation, the dog lets out a sharp bark that sends him scrambling back towards the nearest wall.

He quickly blinks the sleep out of his eyes and is about to yell for help when he notices something off. Taking a closer look, he can see that those amber eyes look far too intelligent to be passed off as a normal dog. "Don't tell me…Kise? Is that you?" he asks tentatively.

The dog barks again, his tail wagging harder. "It's time to wake up, Kagami-kun!" he says, much to Kagami's surprise.

"So it _is_ you! Why'd you have to come wake me up in that form?" he demands.

"Kurokocchi asked me to. He said it'd be a fun surprise for you, you know, to cheer you up after not finding your brother last night," Kise answers, his head tilting to the side. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong except for the fact that I got woken up by a _dog_," he grumbles to himself, though the other no doubt heard him. "Why do you call him Kurokocchi, anyway?"

Kise blinks. "Hmm? That's how I address the people I respect. And Kurokocchi's just the best, wouldn't you agree?"

Kagami stifles a snort of disbelief. "That's arguable at best."

"Good morning, Kagami-kun, did you sleep well?" Kuroko suddenly greets from the doorway, giving him another start.

"Don't sneak up on me like that!" He glares at the enenra. "You're a terrible person."

"I don't know what you mean," Kuroko replies easily. "As you know, Kise-kun will be coming with us, so we thought this would be a good opportunity to help you get over you fear of dogs. We had your best interest at heart."

"What? So you had a part in this too?" Kagami asks Kise, sending a glare his way.

Kise's tail never stops wagging. "We had your best interest at heart, Kagami-kun," he repeats.

Completely unconvinced, Kagami rolls his eyes. "Can you change back now? I'm awake—and so is Kuroko's inner sadist, apparently." He lets out a sigh of relief when the inugami shifts back. "Are there any more surprises and hidden talents I should know about?"

Kuroko perks up. "Kise-kun is very good at sensing spirits."

"Well, that's just wonderful," he drawls. "Exactly what I need: a dog telling me about spirits. My two favourite things combined into one."

He can only imagine what kind of nightmares he'll be plagued with from now on.

"And I'm really good at fighting in this form too," Kise adds helpfully. "Let's spar some time! I can show you how strong I am!"

"Oh, that's right. Sorry, I completely forgot about your ability, Kise-kun," Kuroko says, shrugging it off. "I guess it wasn't worth mentioning."

The tears immediately return. "So mean!"

Kagami shakes his head. "Cool it, you sadist. The morning's just begun. There's plenty of time for teasing, so try to space it out a little, okay?" He turns to Kise. "I haven't had a sparring partner in a while. Which form do you normally fight in?"

Distracted from his crying, Kise turns and shows off the sword at his hip with a beautiful blue tassel hanging off the pommel. "Well, it depends on my opponent. I can fight in any form just fine, but if you want to test your swordplay, then it'll have to be this one because, you know," he wiggles his fingers, "thumbs."

He grins. "Since you so kindly offered, let's have a match after breakfast before we leave. No magic."

"Sounds good to me, Kagami-kun," the inugami replies.

* * *

"What was with that wake-up call? I thought you said he didn't have anything against humans," Kagami mutters over breakfast, taking the opportunity to complain while Kise was out doing his patrol.

Kuroko blinks slowly. "He doesn't. It takes Kise-kun a little while to warm up to strangers, that's all. This is how he treats everyone he first meets—myself included. He's very independent despite how he acts towards me. Give him time, Kagami-kun."

He frowns and admits, "I don't like the idea of travelling with an unfriendly dog."

"You don't like the idea of travelling with _any_ dog," Kuroko points out.

Unable to deny it, he frowns and turns back to his breakfast, wondering why their first new comrade had to be an inugami.

"Kise-kun's strong. You'll be glad he decided to come along soon enough," Kuroko says, "even if it takes some getting used to on your part. By the way, you should finish your massive breakfast before he gets back or he'll eat whatever you don't finish."

"It's not that big—wait, seriously?"

Kuroko nods. "Kise-kun doesn't like being hungry."

Brows furrowing, instead of answering, Kagami decides to concentrate on eating.

After breakfast, the two meet up and begin warming up. Kagami takes his staff out and asks, "So what's this special ability of yours?"

"You'll see," Kise answers, stretching. "Are you going to be fighting with that? Do you want to borrow a sword?"

He shakes his head. "It's fine. This is what I normally train with. It was specially made to be used in combat. Most people in the capital don't like it when onmyouji have weapons on them."

Kise arches a brow. "Do they not realize that magic's far more dangerous than their weapons?"

"It's easier to be wary of things you can see," Kagami says.

"They like things they can control, hmm? That sounds about right." Unsheathing his sword, the inugami nods at him. "Come at me."

He charges forward and brings his staff down. Kise parries the blow easily and again, he's reminded of how strong the other is. He looks up only to see the sword swinging towards him. Jumping back, he barely dodges the swipe. Fast and strong, Kagami's almost glad he had to face Kise's other form yesterday. Despite being a monstrously large dog, at least his size made his movements easy to track.

A few minutes in, he starts noticing something. The moves Kise is using against him are his own, only infused with more speed and power. Judging by the difference in their breathing, his stamina's no match for the inugami's. Kagami lunges forward to get another shot in. Kise's eyes flash as he dodges to the right and does the same lunge, only his attack gets through.

With the sword pointed at his throat, Kagami drops his staff and raises his hands in defeat.

"Looks like it's my win," Kise says with a smile, lowering his blade. "You weren't too bad, surprisingly."

"Thanks," he mutters. "We can't all copy other people's moves like you do."

"Oh, you even managed to notice that? You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

Kagami huffs. "Exactly how low were your expectations for me?"

Kise laughs and shrugs. "I had zero expectations, but I guess that was a little too low. That was a good match."

"So copying swordplay is your special skill?" he asks.

"Not just swordplay," the inugami answers. "Any weapon I've seen in use, really. But swords are my favourite. Don't they make me look cool, Kurokocchi?"

"Sorry, I wasn't watching," Kuroko replies.

Kise sulks. "How cruel! I was doing so well too!"

"It was a good spar. I'd forgotten how fun they could be after Tatsuya left." Wiping the sweat off his brow, Kagami turns to Kuroko. "So are we leaving soon? The barrier's set up, the charms distributed, and the talismans made. We're off to Touou, right?"

Kuroko nods. "Yes, but before that, you might want to take another bath first while you still can, Kagami-kun. I imagine you're only going to smell worse as the day progresses."

* * *

"Are you sure you've got everything you'll need?"

After washing up, Kagami returns outside to find everyone gathered around Kise. He walks over and stands next to Kuroko to watch them exchange their farewells.

"I've got everything, don't worry," the inugami reassures the other. "Look, here comes Kagami-kun. I guess we should get going."

"Don't forget to bling back souvenils flom youl tlavers!" Hayakawa says.

Moriyama scoffs. "Forget that. Bring back girls."

Kasamatsu rolls his eyes and smacks the pair on the head. "Ignore them. Stay safe. Eat. Sleep. Don't go off on your own. And don't do anything stupid while you're out there. You're representing Kaijou now."

"Senpai, are you going to cry when I'm gone?" Kise asks with a smile.

"What? Why would I cry? You'll be coming back," Kasamatsu states, crossing his arms. "We'll be waiting for you, so don't take too long, you dumb dog."

Eyes watering, the inugami pulls the other into a hug. "I'll come home! I promise I will, so don't go anywhere, you guys!"

Kasamatsu laughs and pets him on the head. "Where would we go? This is our home, idiot."

"I'm glad," Kuroko says quietly.

Kagami arches a brow and looks down. "What for?"

"Kise-kun seems to have found himself a good home."

"And what about you?" he asks. "Didn't you find a good home too? At Seirin?"

Kuroko turns to him and blinks as though the thought was occurring to him for the first time. "Yes, I suppose I did."

* * *

Aside from the occasional canine scare, having Kise in their party does prove useful. Aside from the daily spar, the inugami assists in locating spirits for exorcisms during their stops at the village. He even managed to scare away a group of bandits who were ready to rob them.

As the days pass, Kagami finds himself getting used to the inugami's different forms—even though he still needs _some_ warning beforehand to avoid any major panic attacks.

"You almost got me this time," Kise says after their spar one morning. "It's probably all this miasma that's still lingering around—it's not letting me go all out. I thought it'd clear up faster than this."

Lying on the ground and panting, Kagami scoffs. "One of these days, I'll get another win on you."

The inugami cocks his head to the side. "Why are you smiling like that?"

"Nothing. Just thinking about how close I was to winning this time," Kagami answers.

"I'll acknowledge your potential, but you're still no match for me. No matter what kind of technique you use, as long as I see it, I'll pay it back twice as hard."

He scoffs. "That's fine. After all, life is about challenges! Without strong opponents, living isn't fun. It's perfect if I can't win. Besides, you just explained your weakness to me. I'll just have to come up with a technique you can't see…or something like that."

Eyes wide with surprise, Kise blinks and stares at him for a long moment before bursting into laughter. "You really are an interesting one! I can't wait to see if you'll be able to live up to your words. Before you get too confident, you should probably know that out of all the guardians, I'm still considered the baby for having joined so late."

Kagami furrows his brows, finding it hard to believe. "Really? So what's the guardian of Touou like? He's not another dog, is he?" he asks. "At least warn me beforehand this time."

Kise perks up at the mention of Touou, his tail wagging. "Aominecchi? He's not an inugami, but he's strong! He's the one who taught me how to fight with a sword. He's so strong, even _I_ can't beat him! And if I can't beat him, you don't stand a chance against him at all!"

"Seriously?"

"It's just as Kise-kun says," Kuroko tells him. "Aomine-kun's probably the strongest one out of all the guardians."

"Oh, great," he sighs. "Having strong opponents is a lot less exciting when you don't have people's lives hanging in the balance."

The inugami sits down next to him and smiles. "Good thing you won't have to face him alone, Kagami-kun."

Kuroko nods and adds, "Or you'd never survive."

"Wow. Thanks for the vote of confidence," Kagami drawls. He can't help but wonder when Kuroko went from teasing Kise to teasing _him_.

"Momoi-san's probably with him, right, Kise-kun?" Kuroko asks.

Kise's smile falters just slightly. "The last I heard, she was still there with him. It'll make things a lot trickier, won't it?"

Kuroko sighs. "That's a good way to put it."

"At least she's weak against you. That'll probably help somehow," the inugami tries.

"You seem to love Kuroko, but that didn't stop you from attacking us," Kagami points out, sitting up. "Oh well, so long as they're not dogs, I'll be fine. C'mon, let's get a move on. Weren't we aiming to get out of Kaijou by nightfall?"

The two nod and begin to packing their gear. "I wonder if we'll really be able to beat Aominecchi and Momocchi, even _with_ our combined power and Kagami-kun's magic," Kise says.

"I think we might stand a chance," Kuroko replies. "You've always held your own against Aomine-kun."

Ears flattening, Kise sighs. "But I've never won against him, and with all this darkness… When it was in me, I was convinced that I _had _to get rid of you two. If the same thing's happening with Aominecchi, then he'll really go all out on us."

Kuroko studies the inugami for a moment. "Isn't that why you've been training all this time? You've gotten stronger since the last time we met, I can tell."

Kise lights up at the comment. "Really? You noticed, Kurokocchi? I've been training super hard! So maybe I'll actually beat Aominecchi when it really counts! After all, it's what I'm here for, right?"

* * *

They soon arrive at a small village near the borders. There's still a thin layer of miasma covering the place, and many of the homes seem to have fallen into disrepair. It's quiet when the three enter, and quieter still as they walk through.

"Are there even people here?" Kagami asks under his breath.

"There are," Kise answers. "Not very many of them, but they're there. I can smell them."

Suddenly, in the distance, an old woman approaches them. The trio tense up, but then sensing no malice from the stranger, they refrain from drawing their weapons. She comes to a halt in front of them, her failing eyes only able to see Kagami. "Could it be? Would you happen to be an onmyouji, young man?"

He nods. "I am."

"Oh, my wish has finally been granted," she says happily. "Onmyouji-sama, if you have the time, would you listen to an old woman's request?"

The three exchange glances. Kise subtly passes the torch over before the woman notices that it's floating around. Taking it, Kagami steps forward and nods. "Of course. Do you live around here? Why don't we find somewhere to sit and you can tell me your request."

She shakes her head. "I'm afraid I don't have time for that. I really should be off to the fields." She looks around nervously and fidgets with her walking stick. "Oh dear. I'm sorry, but please, go to our shrine and cleanse it. It's just down this road. I think something evil's lurking there and—"

Sensing a presence, Kagami whips out his staff and fights off a youkai. "I think you're right, lady," he says. "I'll go check it out." He glances over at Kise and tells him quietly, "Stay here and protect her. Kuroko and I'll go to the shrine."

Kise nods, unsheathing his sword. "Don't worry. Just leave it to me."

He's about to walk off when he thinks better of it and returns to help the woman over to a tree stump to sit on. "Please just wait here until I get back. The fields can wait. You'll be safe here. I'll take go care of your shrine."

With that, he takes off with Kuroko by his side.

* * *

When they arrive at the shrine, they find a group of youkai loitering around the small, worn down structure. Passing the torch over to the other, Kagami takes out his staff and talismans. "These guys don't seem too strong. I can probably handle this myself."

"Are you sure that's wise, Kagami-kun?" Kuroko asks.

"I'll be fine." The youkai leap at him and in one swift move, he exorcises them. "I know you don't want me doing this, but if they're going to put people's lives at danger, it's my job to stop them."

Kuroko shakes his head. "I understand. These youkai, they shouldn't be here in the first place."

Kagami mutters another chant and exorcises another group while fending off an attack. He can't help but grin. "Compared to sparring with Kise, this is a breeze."

"Don't let your guard down," Kuroko says from the side. "They may be weak, but they may have a trick or two up their sleeves."

"Yeah, I got it," he says, clearing away the last of the youkai. "Looks like that's all of them." His brows furl when he tries to locate any youkai that he might have missed. "I can't sense anything with all this darkness lingering around. Hang on, I'll clear it and set up a barrier."

Sending a strong wind through the village, the miasma quickly disperses.

Suddenly, as he's setting up the barrier, the doors to the shrine open and something flies out.

"Look out, Kagami-kun!"

Kagami finishes the barrier just in time to see a multi-limbed youkai with thick eyebrows and black hair hiss and disappear. "Kuroko, are you alright?" he asks.

Standing on guard in front of him, Kuroko nods. "He only managed to graze me a little before you got to him. I should be fine. There's barely a scratch."

"Good. Let's go find Kise and get out of here," he mutters, turning around and heading back down the road to where the little old woman and Kise were waiting.

"Kurokocchi! Kagami-kun, are you all done?" the inugami calls out, waving at them, his tail wagging. "I kept this lady safe just like you asked me to!"

"You should praise him or something," Kagami says.

Kuroko looks over at him. "Do you think he'll cry?"

He scoffs. "From joy maybe."

"I'll consider it."

"You're such a sadist."

"Maybe. But even you have to admit Kise-kun has a nice crying face, though, right?"

Rolling his eyes, Kagami walks over to the woman and helps her back up onto her feet. "You were right. There were youkai at your shrine. It's been taken care of though. You won't have to worry about them coming back again."

The woman smiles and clasps his arm, her boney fingers dry and rough from a lifetime of hard work. "Oh, that's such a relief. Thank you so much, onmyouji-sama. I won't forget what you've done for us. I wish I had something to give you as a token of appreciation."

"That's alright. I don't need anything. I was just doing my job," he reassures her.

"Please, let us at least provide you with a meal before you leave," she insists.

At the mention of food, Kagami glances at the other two and rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. "I suppose a quick lunch wouldn't hurt."

* * *

After leaving the village, Kise speaks up, "Kurokocchi, something about you smells a little off."

"That's rather rude of you to say," Kuroko replies.

The inugami shakes his head. "That's not what I mean. Something's not right." He begins sniffing around until he ends up at the other's arm. "Did you get injured here?"

Kuroko inspects his arm and shakes his head. "It's not serious. You can't see it and it doesn't hurt at all."

"Are you sure?" Kise asks, concern etched on his face. "It still smells wrong to me."

"If you're not feeling well, you better let us know before we leave Kaijou," Kagami says.

"I'm fine, you two. Don't worry about it. We need to keep walking if we want to make it to Touou by nightfall."

They walk a bit further until Kise comes to a halt. "Kurokocchi, the smell's getting stronger. I can't—we need to find someone to take a look at your arm."

"Kise-kun, I'm fine," Kuroko says. "We need to get to Touou."

"But you're not. Something's wrong. Look, it's starting to show," Kise says, pointing to his arm. "Aominecchi won't go anywhere. He's too strong to be taken down by just anyone. Kurokocchi, let's go find somebody to heal you."

Kuroko furrows his brows and looks at his arm only to see that Kise was right. The skin around his arm had become discoloured and blue. And suddenly, he doesn't feel so well. His vision blurs and his head feels light from the sudden flare of pain.

Kagami reaches out and holds him steady. "Oi, hang in there!" He turns to Kise. "Do you know where we can take him? Back to the shrine, maybe?"

Shaking his head, Kise frowns. "That looks like venom. A simple purification won't be enough and the guys back at the shrine don't know very much about medicine—" His ears perk up. "Wait, I think I know where to go. When it comes to medicine, there's only one person to go to."

With sweat starting to bead down his face, Kuroko asks, "Kise-kun, you can't mean…?"

"Kagami-kun, you keep an eye on Kurokocchi and make sure he's okay," Kise says, transforming into his largest form. He crouches down. "Get on. I'll take us there by air."

Helping Kuroko up, Kagami pulls his lips taut at the thought of riding a giant dog. But then seeing Kuroko's face scrunch up in pain, he sucks up his fear and climbs on. "You can fly? Why did we even spend the last few days walking then?"

Kise lets out a huff. "You'll see. You might want to set up a barrier around me. This will probably get bumpy."

"Wait, what do you mean—!?" he gets cut off when they suddenly shoot upwards into the sky. With one hand, he holds Kuroko close to him while with the other, he grabs onto Kise's fur.

He's flying on a dog.

If Alex was here to see this, he'd never hear the end of it.

In his arms, he can feel Kuroko shiver. "Hey, Kuroko, you're heating up."

"I'm fine, Kagami-kun. Please concentrate on protecting Kise-kun. It takes a lot out of him to fly long distances," Kuroko says.

Kagami frowns. "Protect him from what?"

"Below."

He peers over the side to see youkai flying out of the trees below towards them. Hastily, he sets up a shield around them and fends off the attack. Underneath them, he can see them moving away from Kaijou and Touou at an incredible pace. Never having been so high up before, suddenly, their slow but steady treks across the regions don't seem all that bad anymore.

As they get further from Kaijou, the miasma engulfs them and rolls off his shield sluggishly. "We're almost there, Kurokocchi, I won't let you go anywhere," Kise reassures them.

Another drove of youkai fly towards them, and while is attempting to force his way through and Kagami holding them back, a metallic glint suddenly catches his eye. "Kise! Arrow! Duck!"

The inugami veers off to the side as the arrow sails past them. But instead of regaining his balance, Kise starts descending. "Hold onto Kurokocchi! I can't keep us up anymore," Kise tells them. "This is going to be a rough landing!"

Wrapping his arms around the enenra and bracing them for impact, Kagami squeezes his eyes tight and waits as they draw closer to the ground. The sudden landing sends him flying off the inugami and when the dust clears, he can see Kise standing over him in his human form, panting.

"Hey, are you alright?" he asks.

"Sorry about that. Flying long distances is pretty tiring for me. And it looks like we were spotted, so it's not an option anymore," Kise says, stretching his limbs out and catching his breath. "Kurokocchi, you are alright?"

"I'm fine, Kise-kun. Don't overwork yourself," Kuroko says weakly.

Kagami frowns. "Like you're one to talk. You're really not looking so good. Let's hurry up and get to where we need to be."

Stretching his limbs and cracking his neck, Kise turns back into his other form and tells them, "We're almost there. Climb on. It'll be faster this way. Kagami-kun, you'll want to get your staff and talismans ready. That guy won't go down without a fight, and he probably has backup."

"Who are you talking about?"

"The guardian of the shrine—the one who shot at us. Never mind that, though. You'll see when we get there and I'll be there to help. Hurry up and get on. I'll need that barrier still."

He helps Kuroko back up onto the inugami's back and the three of them speed off.

As they draw closer to the Great Shrine, Kagami can see a figure standing at the front as though waiting for them. With a black bird perched on his shoulder, in his bandaged hands are bows and arrows, drawn and ready to be shot. And hanging off the waist of his pants…

"…is that a toy rabbit?"

* * *

A/N: Yay, I finally have a bit of a break from my finals! I should probably get back to studying so I'll just leave it at that. Hope everyone's doing well! Enjoy!

Oh, and in case you were wondering, that youkai was Hanamiya.


	6. Shuutoku

Chapter 6: Shuutoku

"Why is he holding a toy rabbit? I'm not the only one seeing this, right?" Kagami asks.

"It must be his lucky item," Kise tells him, climbing the stairs. "Midorimacchi? It's us!"

The youkai lets loose an arrow and Kise dodges to the side only to have another fired his way and changes form in midair to avoid getting struck. It sends Kagami and Kuroko flying into him and the three land in a heap off to the side of the stairs.

Kagami frowns and rubs his head. "Are you two alright?"

"I wasn't expecting him to predict my jump like that. Midorimacchi's gotten better again," Kise whines, rubbing his head. Suddenly, ears perking, he grabs the two and leaps behind a large tree as another arrow flies towards them. "Kurokocchi, are you okay?"

Kuroko nods, clutching his arm to his chest. "I'm fine, Kise-kun."

"So what exactly is he?" Kagami asks, peeking out from behind the tree to study the form at the top of the stairs.

"Midorima-kun is a moidon, only he never took root anywhere. You probably don't want to stick your head out like that, Kagami-kun. He never takes the shot unless he's sure his aim is dead on."

Kise raises his head and sniffs at the air. "There are others up there with Midorimacchi. Two…no, three of them, I think."

"Well, that doesn't help our cause at all," he mutters. "Why can't these things ever be easy?"

"I can create a smokescreen for you," Kuroko suggests. "You'd probably have better luck getting close to them that way."

He shakes his head and sets up a barrier around the other to keep the miasma out. Setting down the torch next to Kuroko, he says, "No, you stay here and wait where it's safe. Kise and I can handle this on our own—probably…or, we'll try."

The enenra shoots him an unimpressed look. "That's not very convincing, Kagami-kun."

"We'll be fine out there! Besides, you should be worrying about yourself. Just look at your arm. There's no telling how your powers will affect you."

"Kagami-kun's right, Kurokocchi," Kise says. "If you turn into smoke, it might get worse and we won't be able to turn you back. It's better if you stay here and rest for a while."

A little reluctantly, Kuroko nods. "I understand. Please be careful."

The inugami smiles and reassures him, "Don't worry, Midorimacchi doesn't stand a chance against us. I've still got to win against Aominecchi, remember?"

* * *

The two of them sprint away only to duck behind another tree, closer to the shrine. "Even though we said all that and told Kuroko to sit this one out, a smokescreen really would've been helpful in this fight," Kagami admits sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I know, but it can't be helped," Kise replies, peering out at the shrine from behind the tree. "There's definitely three others up there. We have to win this quickly before Kurokocchi gets worse. We'll just have to figure something out by ourselves."

"I agree, but how do you even beat a moidon? What are their weaknesses?"

Kise shakes his head. "I don't know. I've never sparred with Midorimacchi before. When I said figure something out, I was hoping it'd spark an idea or something, you know?"

Kagami perks up. "What about fire?"

"No, absolutely not. No fires allowed. That's like the worst idea ever and definitely the fastest way to make him mad," Kise says immediately. "Don't you have any other ideas?"

He crosses his arms and tries again only to come up blank. So far, he's just been winging everything, from leaving the capital to teaming up with Kuroko. Though, upon reflection now, a plan of some sort probably would've been a good idea. Alex has always been more of a doer than a thinker, and her methods, however unorthodox, have clearly rubbed off on him.

"Kagami-kun?"

"Sorry, nothing's coming to me."

"That's alright. I guess all we can do now is take them head on then," the inugami sighs. He stretches out his limbs and says, "C'mon, let's go! We have to get Midorimacchi back to normal before Kurokocchi gets any worse!"

Before Kagami can reply, he's sailing through the air towards the shrine. But suddenly, from the corner of his eyes, he notices figures closing in on them all while several more arrows fly towards them. "Youkai and arrows incoming!"

"I'll take care of these guys, go get Midorimacchi!" Letting go of Kagami's arm, Kise comes to a halt midair and draws his sword just as the two tengu reach him.

Aware of his sudden freefall and the approaching arrows, Kagami quickly takes out his staff and blocks the attack. Then, with nothing left to do while flying through the air, the panic set in. "Kise!"

There's a blur of yellow and the next thing he knows, the inugami collides into him and he's being half thrown and half dropped onto the ground with Kise right next to him. "Sorry, Kagami-kun. I almost forgot about how completely helpless you are in the air."

"Thanks," Kagami barks, shoving the other away just as more arrows struck the ground. "Change of plans, let's deal with the tengu first. I'll find a way to keep them out, and in the meantime, help me come up with a way to trap your friend."

"Yeah, okay. Sounds good!"

The two leap out of the way to take on a tengu each, all while keeping an eye out for incoming arrows. Jumping back to dodge a hit, Kagami falls over to the side, narrowly missing a hit. "How'd he know what I was jumping to?" he shouts, parrying another hit from the slimmer youkai.

Pinning down his opponent, a particularly tall and strongly built tengu, Kise looks around, his ears twitching. "I heard someone talking just now. But I don't see where—wait, it has to be the youkai on his shoulder! It's telling him where to aim!"

Kagami glances over at the inugami while pushing his own opponent back with his staff. They won't be able to get to Midorima while busy with other opponents. "Kise, I have an idea. When I tell you to, I need you to jump towards me and watch my back," he says.

Kise nods, applying more force to the struggling tengu underneath him. "Understood. Better hurry, Kagami-kun. Midorimacchi's drawing his bow again."

Giving the blond tengu a hard shove, Kagami yells, "Now!"

The inugami leaps up and lands directly behind him just in time to cut the incoming arrows in half.

Not wasting any time, Kagami pulls out a talisman and sets up a barrier around the two, effectively trapping them in it. "Good," he says with a sigh of relief. "That should hold them for the next little while. Now, we have to deal with the other two somehow."

"We can't get anywhere near them so long as that youkai can predict our movements. I don't think it's particularly strong, but we also can't reach it," Kise says. "Midorimacchi hasn't moved a single step since we got here."

"And the only thing keeping us from getting shot in the face is our reaction time," Kagami grumbles. "Let's see, we were safe behind that tree earlier, weren't we? Maybe it has to see us to predict our actions."

Kise frowns. "That'd explain why Midorimacchi chose to stand out in the open like that. We can't get near him without being seen this way. I can barely make him out through all this darkness, but he probably can't see it."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't remember ever seeing the darkness when it was in me. Maybe only those who are unaffected can see it," the inugami explains. "Having Kurokocchi fighting with us sure would've been nice, huh?" Suddenly, his ears perk up. "Wait, Kagami-kun, all that watching and predicting must take a lot of concentration, right?"

He blinks. "What? Yeah, probably."

"Before, I remember always losing to the others in games because I'd get distracted by passing things and lose my concentration. Maybe all we have to do is break that youkai's concentration with a distraction," Kise explains. "How about I draw their attention away while you go in with your magic."

"That might work. How are you feeling though? All this darkness can't be doing your condition any good," Kagami says.

Waving his concern off, Kise shakes his head. "Worry about Kurokocchi, not me. I'll be fine. The charm you gave me is still holding up. C'mon, let's do this. Midorimacchi used to always complain about how loud and disruptive me and Aominecchi were," he says, leaping up into the air and shifting into his youkai form. He lets out a loud growl and charges toward Midorima.

Kagami ducks behind one of the stone lanterns and tries to figure out the best way to get to the pair without being noticed right away. He watches as Kise bats away arrow after arrow, jumping back and forth in midair, twisting and turning, and running circles around the moidon.

Not wanting to waste any more time, he takes off, sprinting towards the pair. Kise takes his cue and lets out a loud bark, exaggerating his movements so much, even Kagami couldn't help but glance up at him.

Suddenly aware of the trap, the bird turns its head towards him and opens its beak, but it's too late. Kagami throws it off the moidon's shoulder with a spell and forms a barrier around Midorima while Kise dives in to hold the bird down with his paw.

Midorima's eyes widen for a moment before pulling out more arrows. Not wanting to test whether or not the shield would hold up against weapons, Kagami begins his chant. A circle appears around the youkai, and the darkness in the barrier begins to swirl and dissipate while the moidon's brows furrow.

Letting go of his weapon, Midorima covers his hands over his ears and shakes his head as though blocking out noise.

"Ungrateful, pitiful creatures. Even though we provide food and shelter, they never give thanks. Everything they have is because of us. Why do we even bother with them," the moidon mutters. "It's so hot. Everything's dying. Master, please save yourself! What? Then I'll…but I don't want to run! This is all their fault! I'll curse them and make them wish they never stepped foot here!"

Kise's ears flatten against his head. "Midorimacchi…"

"It would've been better if they never came to this land," Midorima hisses. Then his shoulders sag. "Today's not a lucky day. Even if I do everything I can, it's not enough. Why can't I win against you?"

Finishing his chant, they watch as Midorima eventually collapses, much like Kise had back at Kaijou Shrine. Kagami wipes the sweat off his brow and turns to Kise. "I'll go take care of the other three. Go get Kuroko and make sure he's alright. And maybe bring our supplies, I get a feeling your friend will want water. I'll set up some space for you here."

The inugami dips his head and leaves the bird to Kagami. He quickly runs over to where Kuroko is and returns with the enenra, placing him in the barrier next to Midorima before shifting into his dog form. "Look, Kurokocchi, we did it," he says, standing on unsteady feet but with his tail wagging at full speed. "If we give him water and sunlight, maybe he'll wake up faster, and then he can heal your arm!"

Weak, but still conscious, Kuroko nods, looking through their supplies for water.

* * *

By the time he finishes with the tengu, Kagami returns to find the three huddled in the little shielded area he created. Kise's curled up in a ball to the side while Midorima is sitting up and inspecting Kuroko's arm, looking worn out but well. "It looks like the work of a spider youkai. You should've gotten this looked at earlier. If you'd taken any longer to get here, this could've turned fatal. It's not like you to be so careless, Kuroko."

"Sorry. It barely touched me; I didn't think it would get so serious," Kuroko apologizes, wiping the sweat off his brows with his free hand. "Ah, Kagami-kun, have you finished taking care of the others?"

Kagami nods and takes a deep breath. "I'll have to purify a bigger area for you guys to move around in, but I just need to catch my breath first. What happened to Kise?"

Kuroko looks over at the inugami. "He's just sleeping. Flying will do that to him. It doesn't come naturally to those of us without wings. In order to stay in the air, he basically had to form a path with his own power to walk on."

His brows shoot up, his respect for the other growing. "He was using sheer strength to fly? We came all the way from Kaijou too. I didn't know he was putting that much effort into it."

"Kise-kun doesn't like to show it."

"And what about you? Are you going to be okay?"

"He will be," Midorima answers, "if you can bring me my supplies from that building over there. It should be in a drawer case in the first room to the right. I've been informed that I am not to leave this area. And where are Takao and the others? Are they alright?"

"You mean the tengu? They're fine. I had to set up another barrier around them to make sure they don't try to move around too much when they wake up though," Kagami says, walking towards the building.

He quickly finds the case and returns to the trio only to be stopped along the way by the black bird that had been perched on Midorima's shoulder. "Hey, you," it calls out.

Kagami pauses in his stride and looks around before pointing at himself questioningly.

"Hey! Yeah, you there, human-onmyouji-sama who's on an epic journey to dispel evil from the land."

He frowns. "What is with you youkai and that phrase?"

"Never mind that. Mind coming over here and letting me out?"

"I can't. There's still darkness everywhere and I don't have the time to purify everything yet," he replies wearily, gesturing to the area around him.

"That's not a problem," the bird says. "All you have to do is let me ride on your shoulder. The darkness doesn't affect you, does it? If anything, you seem to be repelling it. Just let me get over to where Shin-chan and your friends are. I'm light! I promise you'll barely notice me there."

"Shin-chan?" Kagami mutters to himself before realizing that the bird's probably referring to Midorima. Heaving a sigh, he relents. "Sure, whatever, hop on." With the bird on his shoulder, he makes his way back to where Kuroko is. "Here are your supplies, and your crow insisted on coming along."

"Crow!?" the bird cries out, indignant. "Did you hear that, Shin-chan? He called me a crow! I'll have you know that I'm a hawk. Isn't it obvious? In what way do I look like a crow? Do I look like a crow to you, Shin-chan?"

Midorima looks up from rifling through his supplies to arch a brow at the bird. "Takao, I see you're well. No, you don't look like a crow, now hurry up and get over here and help me with this. I need you to ground up leaves and roots for me."

"Shin-chan, you always know just what to say." With a laugh, the bird hops off his shoulder and transforms into a tengu with sleek black hair and sharp eyes. He squeezes himself around the other three with some difficulty due to his wings. "Wow, it's cozy in here. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I have to take care of Kuroko's arm first and then I can tend to your wounds. They don't look too serious though. Are you in any pain?"

"My wounds? What wounds? I'm fine. I got stepped on by a big dog, but that's about it. Nothing a nice back rub won't fix," Takao says.

"What about you?" Midorima asks, turning to him. "Do you have wounds that need tending to?"

With the shielded area barely able to contain them all, Kagami takes a step back and inspects the cuts and bruises he received from the fight. "There's nothing life-threatening. It can probably wait till later."

"Bold words for such a fragile creature," the moidon mutters. "Did you get a good fortune today and a large lucky item or are you just blindly confident?"

"A good fortune and a large lucky item?" Kagami furrows his brows. "Neither. I was just thinking that you should probably tend to your own wounds before worrying about mine. Those burns on your arms look pretty bad. Was it my magic? I'm sorry about that."

Midorima quickly pulls down his sleeves and shakes his head. "No, these were from long before your time. They'll go away once I've rested. All of your actions today were warranted and appreciated."

"Coming from someone as shy as Shin-chan, that's probably the highest compliment you can receive," Takao quips.

"That's enough out of you, Takao."

The tengu bursts into laughter. "Are you blushing, Shin-chan!?"

"No, I'm not!"

He breathes out a sigh of relief at the words. "Well, it's nice to hear that I'm doing the right thing. I'll just finish up securing the shrine then we can figure out what to do next."

"Kagami-kun, you should probably rest a while first," Kuroko suggests. "You're going to overexert yourself at this rate. You've been using your powers since this morning at the village."

"Hmm? Don't worry about it. I'm fine. It's probably best I do this first, then at least you guys won't have to be cramped up in there, and those tengu over there too. The barriers I created weren't made to last very long. Besides, it's going to get dark pretty soon," he says. "I'll be right back."

Kagami walks around the perimeters of the Shuutoku Shrine, placing charms around it and trying to decide on his next plan of action. On the one hand, he could purify the darkness, and on the other, he could simply push it out. But given the density of the miasma, even with the strongest winds he can conjure, it would be dark before he could get the task done.

"Guess there wasn't much of a choice to make," he sighs. He looks down at his trembling hands and tries to shake the weakness out of them. In the back of his mind, he's already picturing a nice, comfortable futon to sleep on.

Placing the last of the talismans in place, he begins chanting. All around him, the darkness begins dissipating. And as the last of the miasma finally disappears, he can feel a slight breeze coming from behind. Suddenly, all he can see is the orangey tinge of the late afternoon sky and then the world goes black.

* * *

A/N: I'm back from my trip! Hope you didn't wait too long for this update. Midorima was originally going to be a kappa, but a moidon seemed more appropriate. Enjoy!

Moidon: A forest lord. Moidon were long worshiped as gods, but they were also greatly feared. It is said that moidon are quick to take offense, and bestow curses more readily than blessings. Those who ask too much of them, or who gather their fallen branches to burn, will find themselves stricken with various illnesses, including a burning, itchy skin...so villagers are often careful to give their moidon trees a wide birth except at festival time (hyakumonogatari).


	7. Interlude: Midorima

Interlude: Midorima

"Ungrateful, pitiful creatures," he says with a sniff of disdain, his eyes scanning over the vast stretch of land. The forest stretches ever onwards save at the shoreline where a patch has been cut down and stripped bare. There's smoke rising from the little bald patch where the humans have settled.

"They're not so bad," a voice says from beside him.

Midorima snorts in disbelief at the other. "How so?"

Ootsubo shrugs and folds his wings in. "Well, just look at them. They're helpless. The trees provide them with food and shelter, and occasionally water too. It's probably validating to know that you're sustaining life. Or, I imagine it must be."

He shoots the other a look of contempt. "You're just saying that because they haven't come and invaded your mountain yet. They've been chipping away the edge of the forest for far too long."

Ootsubo lets out a scoff. "You're just a sapling who hasn't even taken root yet, but you're already so bitter."

They watch as a human comes stumbling into the opening, a basket full of twigs and branches on his back. He looks wary and unsure as he bends down to pick up another leafy branch, constantly looking over his shoulders and to the side for predators and monsters.

Why do they venture so far from the safety of their homes when they know just how weak and frail they are?

Midorima narrows his eyes. "He's trespassing. I'm going to curse him."

Ootsubo arches a brow, a thoughtful frown on his lips. "Fine, I guess it's alright since the master asked me to forgive of your whims a day. So you get two more before I get angry."

The two of them watch as a large, puffing snake suddenly falls out of a tree, sending the man running back towards the village.

"That was milder than I expected," Ootsubo says.

"It'd take too much energy otherwise," he mutters unconvincingly. "Even though we provide food and shelter, they never give thanks. Everything they have is because of us. Why do we even bother with them?"

"Their respect and worship is their way of giving thanks," a third voice joins in. "Don't underestimate the power of human belief. One day, when you take root, you'll feel just how much power the humans supply us."

Midorima turns to look at their master and his mentor. "Is it more than what they're taking away with all the trees they're cutting down?"

"For now," Nakatani says.

Crossing his arms, he continues to watch the village. "Those humans are nothing but bad news for the forest."

* * *

Over the years, they watch as the village expand into two, then three. Soon, towns crop up and they continue working their way inland. They cut down paths in the forest and clear patches of land for their cattle. And as their cattle die, they watch as some of them turn into youkai. Some retreat into the sea, some go into the forests, and some stay with the humans who raised them.

The trees continue being chopped down and burnt to heat their homes and to bake their ceramics. But as the forest diminishes with size, the humans' respect for the trees seem to grow. They build shrines around the larger trees that were cut down and offerings are laid down.

Curses continue to be doled out on the disrespectful and blessings on the beloved, but nothing seems to stop the humans from expanding their territory. It doesn't take them very long to reach Nakatani's tree and Ootsubo's mountain.

Still untethered, Midorima preferred to retreat deeper into the forest, keeping his distance from the settlements, coming in only to visit his mentor.

They cut down all the trees around to Nakatani and erect a large shrine around him, the largest in the area. Despite not being able to see him, even the humans realize that the large tree was special and not to be touched. A village is built near the shrine, which soon develops into a town. Several humans take to living in the shrine to care for it and the tree, which they claim to be a "moidon".

The humans are good at giving names to things. They name things that they can see and things they can't; things that have always been in existence and things that don't exist at all. There is power in names, and the humans have a gift for making these things wonder how they ever got by without their newfound labels.

"Tengu" is the general term for Ootsubo and his kind, despite how diverse they can be. There are "kodama" in the trees and "kitsune" in the forests. He and his mentor are "moidon". All of them fall under any number of names: "youkai", "mononoke", "ayakashi".

The word "moidon" still feels unnatural to him when saying it out loud, but he can no longer remember if there was anything else he used to call himself by.

"Were we always moidon?" he asks Nakatani one day.

"No, but we are now," is all his mentor says in response. "By giving us a name, the humans have given themselves a kind of power over us. We are moidon now and there's nothing we can do about it anymore. Think of this as a lesson and hold your true name close."

Midorima crosses his arms, unsettled by the idea of humans having any hold over him. He frowns and watches as another tree is cut down. "Those humans are nothing but bad news for the forest," he says again, taking his leave.

Days later, the fire happens.

It starts as a small campfire, used to preserve the meat of some unfortunate animal. But with the summer heat and the winds coming from the sea, the fire soon takes flight and lands on a tree. Then, one after another, the trees go up in flames, and soon, the forest is on fire.

From the safety of a nearby mountain, he watches as smoke rises from the trees. Alarmed, he takes off towards the town, but by the time he reaches it, the fire has grown far beyond control. Despite their best efforts, the humans and youkai are helpless to stop the flames as it reaches their most sacred tree.

* * *

Midorima never ended up taking root anywhere. It was only through coincidence, or perhaps unwanted meddling, that he ended up back at Ootsubo's mountain, now containing the area's Great Shrine. The two of them spend little time catching up and none at all reminiscing.

"Hey! Midorima Shintarou!"

He turns around to see a tengu standing there.

"I'm Takao. You're gonna be our guardian, right? Pleased to meetcha!"

Frowning, he furrows his brows. "How do you know my given name? And how do you know about me?"

The tengu smiles. "A little birdie told me—hey, what's that?" he asks, pointing to the sap covered stick in his hand.

"It's today's lucky item: sap."

At that, the tengu bursts into laughter.

And that's how he meets Takao.

* * *

Taking aim, he lets his arrow fly, watching with satisfaction as it hits the target in the distance.

Suddenly, someone starts snickering and he doesn't even have to turn around to know who it is. "What's so funny?" he snaps.

Wiping a tear from his eye, Takao says, "It's still amazing, no matter how many times I see it. And way too high!"

Midorima scowls. "Shut up. Don't bother me."

"My bad! I didn't mean it in a bad way! Really!"

He crosses his arms and asks, "What are you even doing here? You're always here and glaring at me when I practice. Did I do something to you?"

A small, helpless smile flits across Takao's face. "Well, yeah. But as I thought, it seems I can't get you to remember."

Midorima furrows his brows and waits for the other to continue.

"A long time ago, back when this land was still mostly covered in trees, I was young and reckless and thought I could take on anyone. Of course, back then, the strongest youkai in the area were the moidon. I'd heard so many stories about how devastating your curses could be, and I always figured that anyone who could be crowned the lord of such a great forest had to be equally great in strength. If I could beat one of you, wouldn't that mean I'm just as strong? And if I _didn't_ beat you, then, oh well, I had my fun. Or, that was probably what I was thinking at the time. The one I wanted to challenge passed away long before I was born, so I settled for the next best thing: you.

"I think you were just leaving when I found you, which might explain why you don't remember me at all. I might not have really cared about winning, but you completely _crushed_ me! And then you just upped and left! I was so frustrated that I continued training myself. And now, the guy I vowed to defeat no matter what is standing in front of me as the new guardian for our Great Shrine." He sighs and shrugs. "It's pointless to hold a grudge. Rather, I wanted to make you acknowledge me. I guess that made me look like I was glaring at you."

Unsure of how to reply to such a confession, he asks, "Why didn't you say anything?"

The tengu stares at him for a moment before laughing. "You wanted me to say it? 'I got beaten by you, but I worked hard afterwards! Acknowledge me!' or something like that? How lame!"

Even he had to admit that he would've ignored such a request.

"Well, I doubt you were planning on doing that. Actually, don't acknowledge me yet. I'll just have to train more than you. It's just something I decided to do," Takao says. "Before you know it, I'll be the one navigating your shots. Remember it, Shin-chan!"

"Stop calling me by that excessively friendly nickname, Takao."

* * *

"Say, Shin-chan," Takao says, one day after their training session, "you still haven't taken root yet, have you?"

Memories of flames eating away at the forest flash through his mind. "No." To him, the idea of having an immobile physical form felt more like a death sentence. "I have no intention of doing so."

Takao shrugs. "Oh, okay."

"Why does it matter to you whether I take root or not?" he asks.

The tengu shakes his head. "It's not a big deal. I just thought it'd be nice to live with you, you know? My tree got burnt down a long time ago during a particularly dry summer. Bad luck. It happens. And I never got around to finding a new place since my mountain's pretty bare right now. It gives me less to guard and a lot more freedom though, so no pressure or anything."

Midorima frowns, unable to understand how the other can be so lighthearted about these things, when that one fire still haunts his dreams and mars his skin to this day. "Well, you technically live with me already here. And maybe one day, I might consider it."

As he's come to expect, Takao breaks into laughter. "I wish there was a word for it! You're so cold one moment and sweet the next! I can't get enough of it! Shin-chan, you're the best."

He can feel his face heating up at the comment.

"Shin-chan, you're blushing!"

"Shut up! No, I'm not!" he snaps.

"You're so shy!"

"I'm not!"

* * *

While he hasn't changed his mind about taking root, true to his word, he has come to consider it.

Eyes scanning over the newly cleansed shrine, he watches as Kise chases Takao around the courtyard in a strange game of tag. To the human eye, it probably looks a dog chasing a hawk around only to have the bird do dive-bombs back in retaliation. Of course, if a human were to see Kise hopping from roof to roof, they would likely convince themselves that they had dreamt the whole thing up, given their frail mental capacity for the extraordinary.

With nothing better to do while waiting for the onmyouji to wake up, they've been sparring and playing games for the last two days now. They tried playing hide and seek earlier but quickly found out that both of them had equally unfair advantages over the others with their abilities. Giving up on hide and seek, Kuroko went back to check on Kagami while the tengu returned to repairing the buildings and lanterns that had been damaged during the fight and left the two to their games.

Off to the side, Midorima stands, left alone with his lucky item and his thoughts. Sometimes, he liked to think about the type of terrain he'd settle down in. Seeing as the decision would affect him for the rest of his life, he wants to leave as little to chance as possible.

There would have to be plenty of sunlight and water, and a vast forest he could tap into.

Not missing a thing, Takao swoops down and shifts next to him. "What are you thinking about, Shin-chan?" he asks. "You were making that face of yours when you're deep in thought, so I thought I'd come bother you for a bit."

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it," Midorima answers with a shrug.

"Don't worry about it? Well, I can't very well _not _worry about it now that you've said that."

"You'll know when there's something to actually worry about." Changing the subject, he asks, "Where did Kise go?"

Allowing the topic to slide, Takao replies, "He went to go check on onmyouji-sama."

Midorima sighs, "I take it he's still not awake?"

Takao shakes his head and snickers. "No, but he's snoring in his sleep, so he's definitely alive."

"How reassuring. I can't say I'm surprised, powerful onmyouji or not, he's still only human. We even specifically told him not to overexert himself."

"Did you accidentally curse him with idiocy by any chance, Shin-chan?" the tengu teases.

He rolls his eyes. "There's no need to curse him with idiocy. He seems to have a natural abundance of it. It's a wonder why Kuroko chose him for this task."

"And yet you're thinking about going with them on their epic journey," Takao says. "And where you go, I'm sure to follow."

Midorima arches a brow. "You're under no obligation to come."

Takao smiles. "I know, but I've taken a liking to your branches."

"You've never seen my branches," he retorts.

"That doesn't change the fact that I know exactly which one is reserved for me though! Besides, I refuse to be left behind by my home. Isn't that a great idea? A mobile home!"

He turns his head to the side, trying to hide how flustered he got from being called a home, feeling both pleased and self-conscious. "Do whatever you want," he mutters.

Before Takao can tease him, Kise comes running towards them with his tail wagging excitedly. "Hey, you guys, Kagamicchi's awake!"

* * *

A/N: A big thank you to Endles for the fanart (endlexina tumblr com/post/121968852597/im-a-total-sucker-for-japanese-folklore-and)!

Just a short interlude on Midorima and Takao. Midorima's the oldest of the GoM given the lifespan of trees, he's pretty much been around since the late Jomon period, so he's well over 1000 years old. For any history buffs, this fic takes place during the late Heian period, which predates the introduction of eyeglasses to Japan. So technically, no one should have glasses. But enough of my nerd rant. Next chapter, they'll be back to their epic journey!


	8. Onwards

Chapter 8: Onwards

Waking up from his slumber, the first thing Kagami notices is the simultaneously numb and painful sensation in the back of his head, and the second thing is something breathing in his face. Had this been but a few weeks ago, he would've panicked and prepared to face the worse. But now, instead, all he does is let out an annoyed groan.

"Kise, stop panting in my face like that," he mutters, rolling onto his side. His actions only serve to worsen the ache in his head.

"Oh, so you _are_ awake! I'll go get Midorimacchi," he hears Kise saying, followed by the sound of paws trotting away.

"Hello, Kagami-kun. Welcome back to the land of the conscious," Kuroko greets him from somewhere in the room.

Kagami rolls back onto his back and tils his head up to see Kuroko looking down at him. "Welcome back? How long was I out for?"

"Two and a half days now."

He can practically hear the disapproval in the other's voice. "At least that explains why my head hurts so much. Help me sit up."

Kuroko shakes his head. "That's probably not a good idea for someone who's been lying down for the last two days. It'll just make you feel sick. You should probably take it slowly, though, I suspect that there's a high chance that you'll ignore me and do it anyway."

"You're upset. This is about me passing out on the job, isn't it? I assume I got it done since I'm not seeing any darkness outside," he says, glancing over at one of the windows. "I didn't want to have you guys confined in those little areas any longer than they had to."

Softening a little, Kuroko sighs, "I thought you'd say something like that."

"Did you sit there the entire two days I was sleeping?"

"Not all of it," Kuroko says. "We attempted to play a game of hide and seek, but it didn't work out because everyone cheated. It was to be expected though, I guess. The game _was _intended for weaker youkai…and humans."

Kagami gives the other a long, hard stare, hoping to convey his skepticism silently.

The enenra notices. "Please stop looking at me like that, Kagami-kun. I may not be very strong, but I still have my abilities and they happen to come in very handy during a game of hide and seek. You're clearly feeling better if you can muster up so much attitude already. Still, I'm glad you weren't seriously injured…and thank you for helping me. I don't know where I'd be right now without your help."

Smiling, he reaches up and ruffles Kuroko's hair. "You'd probably still be in Seirin, safe and sound. But you're welcome. I'm glad I was able to help."

"Kagamicchi, Midorimacchi said he'll be here to check on you shortly," Kise calls out from the entrance, his tail high and wagging.

"Thanks. Wait—" He blinks and turns to Kuroko. "Did Kise just call me what I think he did?"

Kuroko nods. "Looks like you've earned his respect. Good job, Kagami-kun."

"But why? What'd I do?"

"You really don't know? You were so cool," Kise says cheerily. "To be honest, I wasn't really expecting you to last the battle, but you did! You're surprisingly reliable, aren't you?"

Kagami gives him a crooked smile. "Thanks? I don't know how I'm supposed to take that."

Shifting into his human form, Kise laughs and takes a seat next to him. "Take it as a compliment. From now on, I'm not gonna hold back during our spars anymore."

"You've been holding back?" he asks incredulously.

"Kise, it'd probably be best for you to hold back a little while longer if you have any intention of continuing your journey," a new voice enters.

Kagami tilts his head up and sees Midorima walking towards them with Takao following closely behind. The tengu grins and waves. "Allow me to translate for you; that's Shin-chan's way of telling you how worried he was about your wellbeing, onmyouji-sama."

Midorima furrows his brows. "That's enough, Takao. Go outside and help Miyaji and Kimura or something. Kuroko, help him sit up slowly. And Kise…"

Ears perking up, Kise asks, "Yes?"

"Get out of the way."

"So mean!"

* * *

Midorima gives him a full check-up and bans him from using his powers for the rest of the day before finally giving him leave. Back on his feet and allowed to walk around, he goes outside for a breath of fresh air and to look for the kitchen. Now that he's no longer lying on the ground, the side effects of two days of sleep are starting to show.

His stomach rumbles and the hunger announces itself again.

"The kitchen is that way, Kagami-kun," Kuroko says, suddenly appearing next to him.

Kagami jumps back and stumbles to keep his balance. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"But I left the hall with you," Kuroko tells him.

Too groggy and hungry to argue, he sighs, "Of course you did. My bad. Which way did you say the kitchen was? Is there any food in it?"

Kuroko nods. "I believe there's still food from the people who used to maintain the shrine, and Kise-kun went fishing with Takao-kun yesterday."

"I'm surprised Kise's up and about. I feel like if anyone should've slept for two days, it's him."

"He's also not human and that generally makes life easier," Kuroko teases. "He couldn't maintain his form after a fight. That's probably the most tired I've seen Kise-kun. It's probably for the best that we came to Shuutoku first."

Stepping into the kitchen, Kagami glances back. "What do you mean?"

"We'll stand a better chance against Aomine-kun and Momoi-san with Midorima-kun and Takao-kun's help."

"Oh? Did that guy already agree to come with us?" he asks.

"Yes, his exact words were, 'I don't have a choice because you don't stand a chance against them.'"

Kagami scoffs. "How touching."

Kuroko shrugs. "Well, he's not wrong."

"While we're on the subject of Midorima, why does Takao call him Shin-chan?" he asks.

"It's Midorima-kun's given name," Kuroko explains. "You know about it, right? We have our real name, which we hold sacred and has to be given freely; our general name, the one we introduce ourselves by; and our given name. After a youkai gives its real name to someone, their new master will give them a new name so that they can issue orders without giving away its real name. Midorima-kun's given name is Shintarou."

He nods in understanding. "What about you? You've got one too, don't you?"

Kuroko blinks. "Yes, I do. It's Tetsuya."

"Tetsuya," Kagami repeats. "Kuroko Tetsuya, hmm?"

"Is there something wrong with my name?"

"No, it's just that when you say it like that, it sounds so human." He chuckles. "Kuroko Tetsuya."

* * *

"I still can't believe you three were planning on going to Touou alone," Midorima chides, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"But it makes sense, doesn't it? Who better to get to help than the strongest one of us?" Kise says with a shrug.

Midorima frowns. "That may be true and I can see the logic behind it, but I still don't think it was a good idea for Kuroko to bring you along."

The inugami makes a face. "I'm the only one that can even come close to keeping up with Aominecchi though."

"You're also the one who wants him to lose the least. Can you really fight someone you admire so much? Besides, out of all of us, you're the one with the most to lose when it comes to that guy. What was Kuroko thinking?"

"Don't worry, Midorimacchi," Kise reassures him. "It's not his fault; I'm the one who asked to come along. Kurokocchi probably had the same concerns. But I'll beat Aominecchi for sure. It's why I'm here after all."

Rolling his eyes, Midorima shakes his head. "You're an idiot."

"I haven't even done anything yet!"

With a huff, the moidon turns around and starts walking off. "Whatever. Go die."

Chasing after the other with his ears folded down, Kise calls out, "Midorimacchi, wait! I don't know what you're actually trying to say without Takao here to translate!"

"Good!"

* * *

"Nothing?"

Kuroko shakes his head and steps away from the bonfire. "I'm sorry, Kagami-kun. From what I can see, your brother doesn't appear to be in Shuutoku either."

Kagami rubs the back of his neck worriedly. "If he's not here then he's not here. Thanks anyway."

"Maybe he'll be at Touou," Kise suggests.

Nodding, he gives a weak smile. "Yeah, hopefully he'll be there."

He mentally tallies the number of regions left and ponders his next move. If Kuroko doesn't find Tatsuya in any of them, should he return to the capital? Alex never gave him any instructions for his self-appointed mission in case of success or failure. But then again, being as easygoing as she is, she probably didn't think that far ahead.

Thinking back to the last conversation they had before he left, he tries to recall any advice she might've imparted on him.

_Entering his room without seeking permission of any kind, Alex saunters in and smiles. "Taiga, there you are. Hmm? What's with all this stuff? Where are you going?" _

_"I'm gonna go look for Tatsuya. It's been so long already and we still haven't heard from him. I'm the one that made him leave in the first place, so I should be the one to go find him," he replies, stuffing his clothes into his bag._

_"Tatsuya, huh? When are you going?" _

_"After I finish packing, I guess," he says._

_"So soon?" _

_He huffs. "You're the one who always goes on about how someday never comes."_

_"That's true. Good luck with your search. I feel like you'll need it."_

_Kagami looks over. "Do you have any idea where he went?"_

_She shrugs and takes a seat on the ground next to him. "Nope. Last I heard, he went west, I think. There's a nice little province there and a place called…Seiran? Seirin? I don't know, it was something like that. It's supposed to be a quaint little place."_

_"I guess that's where I'll start then."_

_"Lucky you. That sounds like quite an adventure. Why are all my students leaving and travelling and having fun while I'm left here to get swamped with work?"_

_He pauses and spares her a glance, realizing that he never asked for her permission to leave. "Do you need me to stay here to help?"_

_Alex scoffs and waves him off. "Need? No. The better question would be: do __**you**__ need __**me**__ to come with you? It sounds like fun and I'm sure I can convince the boss to give me a vacation, you know?"_

_Making a face, he shakes his head. "You're just looking for an excused to shirk your responsibilities, aren't you? In that case, no thanks. I'll be fine on my own, Alex. You've got everyone here wrapped around your finger anyway. They'll all probably cry if you leave, especially the women."_

_She laughs and drapes herself over him. "Such a thoughtful boy you've grown up to be. I guess I'll stay here for the good of the people and let you go off on your epic journey then. I'm sure you'll be fine since you're my best student, and you know how to reach me if you need help." _

_"Yeah, thanks."_

_Alex plants a kiss on his lips, and unfazed by the gesture, he continues packing. "When you find Tatsuya, make sure you give him a kiss from me, okay?"_

_Chuckling, Kagami shakes his head. "I doubt he'll be very receptive of it, especially if it's from me."_

_"I guess that's just what happens when children grow up. You two used to be so cute and affectionate too." She leaves an exaggerated sigh. "If he won't let you kiss him then make sure you blow him a kiss instead. Oh, and don't forget to bring back souvenirs for me! I want alcohol and sweets!"_

Kagami blinks, snapping out of his daze.

"Crap, I forgot about Alex's souvenirs," he mutters.

* * *

The next day, Shuutoku Shrine's tengu all gather in surprise at the news. "Wait, Midorima, you didn't say anything about going with them."

Everyone turns to the moidon who merely shrugs. "Didn't I?"

Kagami gapes. "You didn't tell them you were leaving!?"

"I thought I did, but it doesn't look like it."

Takao immediately bursts into laughter while Miyaji scowls. "Somebody get me a chestnut."

Immediately producing one from his sleeve, Kimura passes it over to the other only to watch him chuck it at Midorima's head.

"Shin-chan, you've gotten them mad again," Takao says in between his laughter.

"But this is something I have to do," Midorima mutters, dodging the chestnut.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Ootsubo sighs, "We get that, but did it ever cross your mind that we might be _worried_ about you?"

"What's there to worry about? I'm str—" he pauses when he gets a nudge in the side from Takao, who shakes his head. Frowning, he corrects himself, "I didn't consider it. Forgive me."

Ootsubo shakes his head with a weary smile. "You haven't changed at all. After all these years, you're still just a sapling, aren't you? Oh well, I suppose I'll just have to consider this one of the three whims I'll indulge you."

Midorima smiles. "We'll be back soon."

Miyaji frowns. "Wait, _we_?"

They turn to Takao, who merely grins sheepishly. "I go where Shin-chan goes. To be fair though, I thought Shin-chan told you guys about all this."

"How nice, they all seem so happy here," Kise observes.

Kagami takes a step back and studies the scene before them and the overwhelming amount of frustration and affection the tengu are giving off. "Happy isn't exactly how I'd describe it."

"Why do we even put up with you two!?"

* * *

The trek out of Shuutoku proves to be long and winding, and the five of them fall into a complacent routine. And although he often thinks about how much faster the trip would be if they flew instead, he also remembers the aerial attacks and sheer terror of being so high above the ground, and that's always more than enough to keep the idea at bay.

"Well, this is the border between Shuutoku and Touou," Midorima says as they come to a halt at the edge of the forest.

"Oh good," Kagami breathes. His legs have become stiff and sore from the trek, but then he looks up only to see another steep and rocky climb ahead. "Are you serious?"

"I'm afraid this is what the terrain's going to be like for the next little while, Kagami-kun. But it should get a little better after that first mountain, and we don't have to climb all the way to the top at least," Kuroko says sympathetically. From the looks of it, he's not faring any better. But at the same time, compared to when they first met in Seirin, the fact that he's only collapsed but hasn't disappeared yet is already a huge improvement.

He studies the mountain and takes a deep breath, trying to mentally prepare himself for the climb. "Let's take a break here and continue when Kuroko's feet start working again," he suggests.

Midorima arches a brow. "Kuroko, why don't you just change forms? Kise's carrying a torch anyway, that way, you can just float along like you used to."

Kuroko shakes his head. "It wouldn't be fair. Since we're working as a team, we should face these challenges together, right?"

"You've changed," Midorima says slowly. "Though, I suppose that's not necessarily a bad thing."

"I completely agree. Maybe we should learn from them, Shin-chan," Takao wheezes as he sets the cart shaft down and collapses to the ground. "I haven't won even once in the last three days. Are you cheating somehow?"

"Nonsense. It's because they were all lucky days and I had extra large lucky items with me."

Kagami rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. While he was all for the two joining the group, he never expected them to bring a cart along—never mind playing hand games every so often to decide who would be the rider and who would be the mule.

Takao groans. "But Shin-chan, there's no way we'll be able to bring the cart up a mountain."

"Yes, I suppose you're right about that. We'll just have to leave it behind then. Maybe we can ask the three back at the shrine to come pick it up."

The tengu laughs breathlessly. "They're more likely to come after us to pelt us with chestnuts. Besides, it doesn't seem all that safe out here yet. I guess it takes a while for so much darkness to disappear."

Turning his attention back to Kuroko, Kagami gives a start when he sees Kise quietly sitting there with the other. "I didn't hear you move at all," he says. "You've been strangely quiet lately, Kise. Is something wrong?"

His tail wags twice and then slows to a halt. "I'm fine, Kagamicchi. I was just thinking."

Kagami reaches out and pets the dog's head. "Is it anything we can help with?"

Kise shakes his head. "No, it's nothing. I was just thinking about how Aominecchi's always so cool, and I hope the darkness hasn't changed that side of him."

"I doubt it'd affect him that much. Aomine-kun's strong, remember? With you and Midorima-kun, the only thing it could really do was control who you attacked. Even if he did change, isn't that just all the more reason to get the darkness out of Touou?" Kuroko reassures him.

"Yeah, you're right, Kurokocchi. Maybe after that, we can spar one-on-one again! C'mon, let's get going!"

Kuroko makes a noncommittal noise. "Please, not yet. I still can't feel my legs."

Despite the cheery words, looking around at the ground, Kagami can't help but find the atmosphere unsettling.

* * *

The climb up the mountain is every bit as terrible as he thought it would be. And so is the one after that, and the one after that. The only reprieve they get are the plateaus and the villages that have been built on scattered pieces of flat ground.

All the villagers they meet along the way all approach him with wariness, having been visited by too many bandits in the last few years. Despite the attacks, the people continue to worship a great deity that's supposed to protect the region from harm and disease.

The deity is said to be scary, blue, and angry; has up to six arms; and depending on the teller, has servants of either three monkeys, demons, chicken, or even the moon and sun as his servants.

"He used to be a demon and bringer of illness," one of the villagers says, "but then he had a change of heart after he was conquered or something."

Kagami arches a brow. "He sounds powerful."

The villager nods. "Oh yes, the Shoumen Kongou is the most powerful being in Touou."

Recruiting such a character would come in very useful in the grand scheme of things, Kagami thinks—assuming the deity's as powerful as the villagers make him out to be. Either way, there's no harm in checking. "Where's this deity's main shrine?" he asks.

"Why, that'd be Touou Shrine, of course!"

"Touou Shrine…?" He subtly turns to the others to confirm his suspicions while the villager goes on about the rituals and activities they perform to avoid ills falling upon them.

Kuroko's turned his head away and Kise's covering his mouth to hide his laughing. "Scary, blue, and angry," Kise says in between giggles. "That certainly sounds like Aominecchi."

"How did someone like Aomine start a cult?" Midorima asks in disbelief.

"He's become a god," Kuroko mutters, his shoulders shaking with stifled laughter.

The villager looks confused when Kagami lets out a resigned sigh. "Of course that's who it had to be," he mumbles to himself.

"Onmyouji-sama, are you alright?" the villager asks.

Kagami nods and lies, "Ah, yeah, I was just thinking about the fastest way to get to Touou Shrine—to pay my respects, I mean."

"That's wonderful of you. I'm afraid the path to the shrine's a long and arduous one though. You see, the shrine was built on the highest mountain in Touou and we used to have a road that cuts right through the mountains, but there've been a lot of landslides lately and avalanches by the shrine. A lot of the main road has been buried, so the only way to the shrine now is to weave up and down the mountains using the local village trails."

He stifles a groan and silently curses his luck.

Of course they'd have to take the longest and most difficult path.

And out of all things, of course they had to go against a god.

* * *

Kagami quickly comes to the realization that being amidst the mountains made it very difficult to track just how far they've travelled. After another two days of hiking and climbing, the group decides to stop for a lunch break in a small clearing of a forest.

"I can't tell how many mountains we've climbed already. Are you sure we're going the right way?" Kagami asks, stoking the fire.

"All the villages we've passed seem to be pointing us in the same direction," Kuroko says, sprawled out on the ground. "What about you, Kise-kun? Can you feel anything?"

Kise shakes his head slowly. "The whole area feels kind of like Aominecchi. For some reason, I can't single out his power in all this darkness."

"I guess we have no choice but to trust the villagers' word since your map doesn't seem to be very useful when it comes to this region," Midorima says.

"It's probably because it was too troublesome to chart this area out," Kagami mutters.

"I wouldn't doubt it," the moidon replies. "I'll go gather more wood and see if there are any mushrooms and herbs I can pick. Maybe I'll come across some string since it's your lucky item today."

He gives a reluctant laugh. "You really don't have to, and I doubt you'll find string in a forest."

"I'll come with you, Shin-chan," Takao chirps.

Midorima turns his head and arches a brow. "What are you talking about, Takao? Of course you are, you're already sitting on my shoulder."

"Yeah, but I just thought I'd tell you anyway!"

Kagami gets up and stretches. "I guess I'll go replenish our water supply. I'm pretty sure there's a stream nearby."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Kuroko asks.

He shakes his head. "No, it's alright. It should be pretty close so I'll be right back. You can just wait here and rest with Kise." Seeing as the miasma here seems to be affecting the inugami particularly badly, he adds, "I'll make you a new charm when I get back."

Walking off towards the sound of running water, it doesn't take very long for him to come across a small stream running through the forest from some unseen source. Sunlight peaks through openings in the trees and creates spotlights on the ground.

As he approaches the water, he sees that in one of the lit, grassy areas, there's a person napping.

Kagami pauses and frowns. With all the stories of bandit and youkai attacks, no sane person would be bold enough to sleep out in the open alone, even if they _are_ armed. With a sword slung carelessly over his waist, the tan man looks perfectly relaxed. In fact, he seems sound asleep, with his mouth slightly open and drool running down his chin.

Not feeling anything dangerous about the man, he wonders if he should wake the other and warn him or he should just get the water and go. For all he knows, the man's one of the many bandits he's been hearing about. If possible, he'd rather avoid getting into fights with humans—and youkai too, for that matter. Taking another indecisive step forward, he gasps when the man suddenly wakes up, revealing unnatural, glowing blue eyes.

The next thing he knows, the man's across the stream and in front of him, running towards him with his sword out.

"Hey, whoa! Wait a second!" The stranger doesn't stop and he instinctively parries the attack with his staff.

The man attacks again and Kagami dodges to the left, wincing as the sword manages to cut into his arm.

"So you're the one who's been asking around," the man says with a low, rough voice. He whips the blood off his blade and gets ready for another attack. "Weak, just like the rest of them."

Kagami scowls and unable to dodge such speed, he directly blocks the next attack instead. The two of them stand there and try to push each other back. He grits his teeth; he can feel his feet digging into the ground from the other's strength.

From behind, he can hear the brushes rustling and Kise calling out, "Kagamicchi, are you alright? I heard you calling out."

He stumbles forward a couple of steps as the sword he was pushing back suddenly disappears. His opponent retreats a couple of steps and stops. Kagami furrows his brows at the expression on the other's face as Kise appears by his side. "I'm fine, Kise. This guy just suddenly started attacking me."

"Aominecchi…" the inugami whispers, his voice unreadable.

Kagami's eyes widen. "_That's_ Aomine? Why can't I feel anything from him?"

"He must be hiding it," Kise says, drawing his sword.

Aomine takes another step back, lips drawn in a taut line, looking ready to flee.

"Kagamicchi, we should probably try to stop him now before he gets back to the others at the shrine."

"That's a good idea. Let's try attacking him together," Kagami instructs, pulling out a talisman. "Like back at Shuutoku, you keep him busy and I'll trap him."

Kise takes a step forward and nods. "Yeah, okay. Ready when you are."

"Now!"

The two of them charge forward towards Aomine, who leaps back to dodge the attack.

Readjusting his grip on his sword, Kise readies himself for another attack when Aomine suddenly shouts, "Ryouta, _stay_!"

Taken aback by the outburst, Kagami pauses mid-chant and glances at the inugami only to find Kise still crouching on the ground. When he looks up again, Aomine's already disappeared into the forest.

He jogs over to the other's side. "Crap, he's getting away. Even if he's hiding his powers, you can follow his scent, can't you? Let's go after him before he gets too far away, Kise."

The inugami doesn't move.

"Kise? Are you hurt? What's wrong?" he asks, worried.

"Sorry, Kagamicchi, but I can't," Kise says. "I'm stuck."

Kagami blinks. "What do you mean you're stuck?"

"Aominecchi gave me an order. He told me to stay so I have to stay."

"He told you to—wait, doesn't that mean…?"

"He's my master, Kagamicchi."

* * *

A/N: Wow, this site's super strict about posting links, isn't it?

Shoumen Kongou: He is a deity of the Japanese Koushin folk belief, who protects against diseases. He often appears as an angry deity with a blue face and body with usually four or six arms. He is often depicted with the sun and the moon, two servants and/or four demons, a rooster and a chicken and the three monkeys that keep eyes, ears and mouth closed. (three-monkeys dot info) And Shoumen Kongou's connection to Koushin didn't happen until, at earliest, the late Heian period, so that fits in nicely with this fic. (wiki)

Historical tidbits: Durians and pineapples aren't native to Japan so Miyaji had to make do with chestnuts since they've got prickly shells. Also, janken and other well known hand games haven't been introduced from China yet, so I'm calling it a generic hand game on the assumption they had some way of resolving minor disputes.


	9. Interlude: Kise

Interlude: Kise

His earliest memories are ones of happiness.

The ones that follow are of sadness, hunger, and confusion.

When he comes to again, the world seems to have shrunk and changed while he was asleep. He can see the roof of his house and his paws no longer fit on the stairs. The trees don't tower over him as much as they used to and the stone lanterns barely go up to his chest.

And there are colours.

There are shades of colour he's never seen before—bold and bright reds, bright yellows and oranges, lush greens and a wider range of blue than he ever imagined.

The biggest difference that he finds though, is the absence of his master. His scent is but lingering and his voice nowhere to be heard. Head cocking, he decides to wander around and see if he can find the man.

None of the people pay him any attention. The cats and mice still run from him, but the people don't even spare him a glance. Although he's never been particularly friendly to strangers, he still finds the complete lack of acknowledgement strange.

Not wanting to stray from his home before his master returned, he sits in front of the main house and waits. Eventually, a man appears and makes a sound of surprise and confusion. "You! You're supposed to stay over by the gate! How dare you disobey me! Get back over there, now!"

He blinks and the next thing he knows, he's right back where he started. Looking around, he tries to remember how he got here and where the man from earlier disappeared off to. Something clicks in his brain at the thought—he understood what the man said. Beyond reading his body language and recognizing keywords, somehow, all the tones and syllables came together and made sense.

His ears prick up as an idea hits him. If he can pick out all the different sounds and syllables, he should just as well be able to use them. That way, he can go ask the man about his master.

Master. He repeats the word over and over again in his head, trying to pick apart the sounds he'll need to make to form the word.

"M…a…mas…"

Before he can finish, the man from earlier appears.

* * *

When he comes to again, there's the lingering smell of blood in his nose and the remnants of an uncontrollable rage. The seasons have changed and marching down the hill, a funeral procession takes place. Ears up, he tries to pick up information to make sense of his current situation.

"I knew his time was coming," a voice comes through. "But that doesn't make it any easier."

"Kise-sama, you'll do fine."

"Perhaps, but what if my magic isn't strong enough to control that beast? It's been generations since it was summoned. We've long since lost its real name and always relied on magic to have it do our bidding, but father's was weaker than grandfather's and I'm even worse. I have no confidence in controlling such a strong inugami."

"Yes, but you are its master now. If it doesn't listen, you can always choose to release it and create a new one."

He blinks and sits up, trying to digest the words. "Mas…ter? Release?" he repeats.

The sun has already set when the funeral ends, and a stranger comes and stands in front of him. "As the new head of the Kise household," he announces in a familiar voice, "I shall be your master from this day forth. And as such, I shall send you on your first task under my magic and guidance."

He blinks again slowly as magic takes over his movement. The magic's strong, but not strong enough to blank out his mind. If he really wanted to, he suspects he could break the man's hold on him without trouble, but to do so would mean being 'released'. His paws stand him up and lead him down the hill, and with idle curiosity, he allows the magic to lead him.

The magic takes him to the next town over where he comes to a halt in front of a moderately wealthy looking house. Inside, the candles are lit and people are talking.

"Dear, are you serious about not repaying your debt to the Kise? I've heard they have an inugami."

"And you believe them? That's just some nonsense they made up to scare people. Look, we've owed them for so long now and they haven't done anything about it. They were just bluffing!"

"Still, I don't think it's good to take advantage of their good graces like this."

"Don't you start on that again. They've got plenty to go around, those rich bastards. They've probably forgotten all about us."

Leaping up onto the roof, he trots around noisily.

"W-what was that!?"

"Probably just a rat or something."

"Dear…"

"Fine, I'll go check it out!" The door slides open and a man steps out. "Always so noisy—look, there's nothing out here!"

"You're not even looking!"

Rolling his eyes, the man turns to the roof and says, "I'm looking, okay? There's—"

He pounces and pins the man to the ground. And before the man can cry out, he raises a paw and slashes his throat. With his job done, his legs guide him back home just as the woman emerges and lets out a piercing scream.

It doesn't particularly bother him. The man's obviously done something wrong and if his punishment meant getting hurt, then so be it. Besides, he doesn't want to stir up any trouble with the people at home until he's found out what happened to his actual master. Turning around, he makes his way back to the house, imagining the praise and reward he'll receive from them for a job well done.

Nobody's there to greet him when he returns.

Tail drooping, nothing is lit except for the moon in the sky and all is quiet except for the calls of some distant animal. Disappointed, he walks around the place, but upon finding everyone asleep already, he returns to the entrance and follows suit.

* * *

As his masters switch again, with the new one even weaker and more insecure in his magical abilities than the last, he finds himself idle and ignored more often than not. With his newfound free time, he develops a habit of eavesdropping on people's conversation, and, having learned to shift into the shape of a regular dog, takes to wandering the town when the man's not looking.

Tail curled up and ears perked, he trots down the street, ignoring strangers and greeting friends—like that nice lady that sneaks him snacks; he finally feels more like his old self. But at the same time, he can't understand how he ever lived so close to the ground with everyone looking down on him.

"Hey! You there," a voice calls out one day. "You in the dog disguise, I see you."

He looks up to see a tanuki sitting on the roof of a shop and turns away, ready to ignore the creature.

"What? Don't know how to speak?"

"I do," he retorts immediately, indignant. "And what's a disguise?"

"Huh? It's something you put on to not look like you. Like this," the tanuki answers, shapeshifting into a statue momentarily.

"You must be stupid if you don't even know that," another says, popping out from behind the first.

Hackles rising, he barks, "Take that back, you two!"

The tanuki both start snickering. "We got the puppy mad, Souta."

"We sure did, Shouta."

"I'm not a puppy, I'm _generations _old!" he continues barking, unable to give a more precise measure of his age.

The two look at each other. "How old is 'generations'?"

"I don't know, let's go ask grandpa. I bet he'd know."

"Yeah, let's go do that. Hey, puppy-dog, we'll see you around."

"Don't call me that!" he shouts after them as they disappear. Behind him, people walk by, eyeing him curiously as he barks at the empty space.

* * *

The next few days pass peacefully. From the house, he can hear the servants conversing with one another.

"Tanakacchi, do you really think there's an inugami here? I swear I heard barking yesterday," one of the servants says.

"You're just hearing things, or maybe it was one of the dogs in town. Anyways, what's with the 'cchi' thing, huh?"

"Oh, it's just something I add to the names of people I respect, that's all."

"If that's the case, you can just call me Tanaka-sama," the second laughs.

"Cchi," he repeats to himself. "Mastercchi?"

Bored with the conversation, he gets up and heads down the hill for a walk through the fields in the outskirts of town. Much to his dismay, the tanuki show up again. He transforms the moment he smells them, hoping to scare them off in his larger form.

"Look, it's the puppy, Shouta."

"Do you think he's trying to scare us off, Souta?"

"Probably, but it's like grandpa said, he's an inugami, isn't it?"

"The one who lives with the Kise, right?"

"I guess that makes his name Kise too, huh?"

"The poor thing," Shouta coos mockingly. "It must've hurt to be summoned that way."

"We heard your master had to starve and kill you," Souta adds. "And grandpa said generations is a really long time, way longer than any human can live for."

"That's too bad. I guess you can't pay back your first master for turning you into this since he's dead now."

Kise, he hates how easily he accepted the name, blinks. As much as he wants to chase the two off, they seem to have information about his master, so he can't help but ask, "What does dead mean?"

The two look at each other again, taking a pause from their teasing. "How do we explain this to a big, stupid puppy?"

"Dead is when your life ends," Souta tries. "Like, they sleep and never wake up again, though sometimes, they just disappear, yeah?"

"No, that's not it. Dead is when they go away and never come back," Shouta says.

As the two argue, he sits down, dazed from disbelief. '"Master went away? He left me?"

Souta gives his brother a push. "Look, you made the puppy sad."

"What? You did too. We were just telling him the truth and answering his question." Shouta protests. "C'mon, let's go home. This isn't fun anymore."

* * *

That night, he wakes up after having a nightmare of the hallucinations that taunted him when he was partially buried and on the verge of death. Waking up panting, he stands up, unable to stay still.

Then, feeling a phantom pang of hunger, he raids the house's pantry and eats everything in sight in hopes of quenching the memory.

"Master hurt me," he mutters. "Just Master then, no cchi."

* * *

As the town expands, much of the nearby forest is cut down and many of the youkai that reside in it flee to new homes. He only rarely sees the tanuki twins again.

His next master has so little power, he can't see him at all. His wife can, but not him. And Kise quickly grows bored. He enjoys fighting, but none of the youkai in town can stand up to him, and most of the monks and priests passing through run away at the sight of him. He's mastered his appearance as a dog after relearning how to behave like one and learned to speak the local language fluently.

What he wouldn't give for someone to fire him up.

"If only it could speak then we could get it to tell us its real name. If I release it, we won't have anything protecting the house," Kise overhears his new master one night. "And you know I don't have the power to summon another."

"That may be, but this one's too powerful for you, and I've seen its eyes. It's grown more intelligent than a normal inugami should. It knows too much. We should get rid of it while it still can—before it turns against us!"

"…you're right. I'll do it after we get back from out trip. We might as well let it do its job a little longer. Worst comes to worst, we can always call someone in to get rid of it. I never wanted to be its master anyway."

The next day, the man and his family set out on their journey. He watches, dreading the day they return. The more he thinks about it, the more he feels a familiar anger bubbling within him. "How dare he? I don't want to go away yet. Why should he get to choose what happens to me? I'm strong enough. I protect this house! Without me, they'd be overran with tanuki!"

Days pass and still, the family doesn't return.

Pacing by the entrance to the main building, he continues his mantra, "I don't want to go away yet. If I protect the house, they'll see that I'm strong enough. I can be good. Then they won't release me and make me go away."

And the days continue to pass still.

* * *

"I want you to go and deal with this one. Do as you see fit."

"What? Why me? It sounds like a pain. Get someone else to do it. From the sounds of it, pretty much anyone could handle it."

"Do I have to make it an order?"

"Tch. You would, wouldn't you? Fine, I'll play along. Don't expect anything though."

"Oh, don't you worry about that; I never do when it comes to you."

"Oi, what's that supposed to mean?"

* * *

Strolling through the forest towards the town, even from afar, he can see by the tattered remains of older buildings that the place use to be much larger and more successful than what it's become now. Towards the edge of the forest, new trees are growing, slowly reclaiming the land that the people abandoned. With such a small, desolate town on the brink of collapse, he has a hard time imagining anything worthwhile being there.

"Hey, look, a human. He must be a traveller, Souta," a voice says from the trees.

"He must be lost. No one would ever travel out here on purpose, Shouta," another answers.

"Let's give him a good scare. It's been a long time since we had any fun."

"Yeah, the locals have grown so boring."

He arches a brow and turns to the tanuki, letting his eyes flash as a warning. "I'll skin the both of you alive if you try anything."

"Whoa, this guy's actually a scary strong youkai, isn't he?" Shouta says, transforming into his human form.

"Why would he disguise himself as a human? How boring," Souta adds, following suit.

The two sit on the branches above, kicking their legs and idly continuing their conversation as though he wasn't there. "Come to think of it, the puppy used to disguise himself as a puppy, didn't he?"

"Yeah, it's too bad he's no fun anymore. All he does is chase people away from that place nowadays."

Shouta sighs, "He doesn't even answer when we tease him anymore."

"It's like he doesn't know everyone from that family's dead."

"Yeah, but he didn't know what dead meant either, did he?"

"Well, he was an awfully stupid puppy to begin with," Souta says with a shrug.

"That is true. Hey, you there in the human disguise. What brings you here?" Shouta asks.

"It's none of your business," he immediately snaps back. Then he reconsiders after a moment. "Actually, tell me more about this puppy with the disguise you were talking about."

The tanuki exchange glances and grin. "No. We don't feel like telling you more after you snapped at us like that."

"We're very delicate creatures, you know? We're so easily hurt."

He scowls, hand moving to the hilt of his sword. "I'll show _you_ easily hurt…"

* * *

The clouds have grown heavy and grey overhead, but Kise doesn't see them. Sitting in front of the main building, he continues his lookout. Suddenly, something hits the back of his head. Caught off guard, he turns to see a young, dark-skinned man standing there with a grin.

"My bad. Well, if it isn't the famous inugami, Kise-kun."

He snarls and bares his teeth. "They sent another one?"

Taken aback, the man blinks. "They? Who's they? You better not be talking about the tanuki twins."

"I don't want to go yet," he continues. "You can't get rid of me."

"This isn't getting off to a good start, is it?"

Not wanting to listen to the man talk any more, he leaps and aims to pin him down. Unlike previous intruders, the man easily parries the paw with his sword still in its sheath.

"I'd hate to have to cut off one of your legs, so you better stop if you know what's good for you," the man warns, swinging his sword.

Twisting back and turning, Kise tries to sweep the intruder off his feet with his tail. When he finishes his turn, he finds the sword getting close and ducks and lunges forward.

Unexpectedly, the man laughs. "You've got pretty good instincts there." He blocks the bite with his sword and gives it a tug.

Kise lets out a growl and clamps his teeth down, refusing to let go.

With a smirk, the young man keeps them in a deadlock for a moment before telling him, "Unfortunately, you've still got a long way to go, pup." Then, with strength he hadn't expected, the man pulls back and flips him over his head, throwing him to the ground.

He snaps his jaws, but before he can get up, a foot comes down and holds him in place. Fear and adrenaline racing through him, he begins kicking his feet and struggling, he doesn't understand how he's losing in strength to a mere human. "Let me go. Let me go! I have to wait for Master!"

"You do realize that your master's dead, don't you? What's holding you back, Kise-kun?" the man asks. "You must've felt your connection with him end, however weak it was."

"No," Kise protests. "Master can't be gone! He has to come back and see that I protected the house! He has to see that I can be good still! Why did he leave? Please, don't make me go away."

Rubbing the back of his neck, the man looks around at the decrepit, abandoned building around them, protected from people and youkai but not from time. "This house is the only thing holding you back then? That's fine, I can free you from it."

"No," he pleads, his eyes wide with tears and his heart pounding deafeningly in his ears, "don't. I don't want to go away yet. I want to live. I just want to live…"

The man's eyes flash blue and he unsheathes the sword. He shifts forms and stretches his back with the help of two of his six arms. At once, Kise can feel power radiating off of the youkai as he raises an arm.

"Please, don't!"

The sword swings down and across in a smooth arch. For a moment, all is still. Slowly, the buildings begin to shift, bits of dust falling from the ceiling. Then, at once, a neat slice appears horizontally through the walls and doors, and the house crumbles to the ground into a heap, sending up a cloud of debris.

Eyes wide, he gasps. "You've destroyed it…"

Still staring at the ruins of the Kise household, he can already feel himself fading.

"You know, I originally came here with the intention of getting rid of whatever was keeping you here so that you could move on and whatnot. But," the youkai says, sheathing his sword and leaning down, "I've changed my mind."

Kise silently glances up at him.

"Your master is dead and your reason for being has been destroyed. I've erased your purpose," the other says easily. "Yet, you still want to live, don't you?"

"I do," he whispers.

Cupping his ear, the youkai asks, "What was that?"

"I do!" he repeats, louder. "I want to live!"

"Then tell me your real name and let me give you a new purpose."

He hesitates for a moment, his mind dredging up the name his original master had given him so many years ago.

"You're running out of time," the youkai says.

"Koumaru. My name is Koumaru."

"Then, Koumaru, until the day you're strong enough to defeat me in a fight, _I_ will be your master," the youkai announces.

"My master…I don't have to go yet," he breathes. Relief washes over him as he releases the breath he was holding, and without meaning to, he slips off into sleep.

Before his consciousness completely fades away, he feels a hand on his head and a quiet, distant voice saying, "Koumaru, huh? It's a good name. The guy who named you must've really loved you."

As he sleeps, he dreams of days of long ago and memories he thought he'd forgotten.

_"Koumaru, there you are. I've been looking for you. Would you like to come with me to town? I also have to go to the temple to pay my respects. Come, I'll buy you your favourite snack as a thank you. That's a good boy."_

_A warm hand and a gentle smile._

_"I wonder how many more times we'll be able to go to town like this? Oh, don't you worry though, I won't let you go lonely; my son has already promised to take good care of you. I hope you'll bring him as many happy years as you have for me."_

The nostalgia remains when he opens his eyes to find himself staring at the sky. Leaning against his back, the youkai—his new master—sits. "Did you have a nice dream?" his master asks.

"Yes," he replies quietly, "it was a very warm and beautiful dream."

"Were you chasing a stick?" the youkai teases.

Kise huffs. "I was eating street food."

"That _does _sound like a good dream. I'm sure you'll have plenty of chances to do that again though."

"You know," he says after a pause, "even though I'm so much taller and the sky's full of so many different colours now, it still looks as far away as it always has."

"That's because you're lying down," the youkai says, pushing himself up. "You'll never reach the sky sprawled on the ground like that. Stand up. Even if it's just a little bit, it'll bring you closer. Koumaru, from now on, under my command, you'll be known as Ryouta. So long as you keep living, I'm sure one day, you'll learn how to fly."

Looking at the dazzling man, he dips his head. "I'll be under your care from now on then, Master."

The youkai rubs the back of his neck. "That's not really what I was going for when I helped you, but we can work on that. And don't call me Master, Aomine's fine."

"Aomine," he repeats, the name foreign to his tongue. "I think you're amazing so…cchi."

"What was that?"

"So that makes you Aominecchi!"

Eyebrow arching, Aomine blinks. "Huh? What's with the 'cchi'?"

"It's because I admire you," he says, tail wagging. "I want to be just like Aominecchi! Teach me how to fight like you!"

Aomine shrugs. "Sure, I wouldn't mind having a new sparring partner, but you'll need hands with working thumbs to do that."

"Okay, I can do that!" Concentrating, he can feel his form shifting and downsizing until he's standing eye to eye with the youkai, his hands held out in front of him. Ears and tail perked with interest, his eyes widen as he admires his new fingers. He turns to the other asks, "Did I do it properly?"

The youkai eyes him for a moment before shrugging again. "Yeah, that's close enough."

Kise beams, tail wagging harder. "So what should I do now?"

Furrowing his brows, Aomine frowns. "What do you mean? Whatever you want to do, obviously! It's not like I'm gonna order you to do anything."

"I need to beat Aominecchi though," he reasons.

"No, but that was really just…" Aomine trails off, trying to find the right words to explain himself. "What would make you happy?"

"Happy?" Kise blinks and looks down in thought. "But I'm happy right now."

"Fine, what if I leave?"

"Then I'd want to follow," he answers immediately. "You can't just go like that! You said you'd teach me how to fight!"

The youkai laughs. "I guess that settles that then. Here, I'll even lend you one of my swords."

He stares at the weapon in awe as it's passed to him. Pressing his thumbs down, he wraps his fingers around it and marvels at how firm but flexible his grip is. He can feel the cool metal work under on his skin, so different from the pads of his paws. Looking up, Kise asks, "Is this really okay? Giving me a weapon when I'm supposed to be defeating you?"

Aomine nods, huffing in amusement. "Aren't you being a little over confident for someone who _just_ got thumbs, pup? You're still at _least_ a hundred years too early to even _think_ about beating me!"

* * *

"That was the first time, you know?_"_ Kise says, sitting on the ground, fiddling with the sword in his lap.

"First time for what?" Kagami asks, sifting through his talismans for something to break the inugami free of the command.

"It was the first time since Master died that I was glad to be alive."

* * *

A/N: Most of the dog stuff is based on my dog and his quirkiness. The twins were originally going to be cat youkai, but I liked the idea of them living in the forest with a huge family more.

Historical Titbit: Way back when, it wasn't common for people to have surnames except the elite.

Note about the name: Koumaru (幸丸) would translate into something like 'Precious/Dear Happiness'. Although the kanji for maru means 'round' or 'roundness' nowadays, back in the day, it was probably written differently to denote affection. Since Kise wasn't originally a youkai, I figured his real name would be his dog name. To read more about Japanese naming ways go to (sengokudaimyo com/miscellany/names html). They do a pretty good job of explaining things.


	10. Touou

Chapter 10: Touou

Kagami scratches his head, stumped. He's tried everything he could think of from setting up barriers to physically pulling the inugami, but still, Kise remains stuck to that one spot.

"I've told you, Kagamicchi," Kise says ruefully. "It's impossible for me to disobey Aominecchi's order."

"No way, there's gotta be a way to fix this," Kagami insists, pulling at his arm.

"There you two are," Kuroko's voice comes as he appears from the trees with the other two. "What are you doing, Kagami-kun?"

Grip slipping from the inugami's arm, he tumbles back. "We ran into that guy," he explains from the ground, "Aomine."

Midorima's eyes widen as he looks over the two. "You tried to take him on yourself? But you don't look too injured."

Kagami sighs and sits up. "We're fine. He took off before we could do anything. The only problem now is that Kise's stuck."

"Stuck?"

"Aominecchi ordered me to stay," Kise explains.

It's only when the words causes Kuroko to stop mid-step that he realizes how much deeper its meaning runs. "I'm sorry to hear that, Kise-kun," Kuroko says quietly.

Ears flattening, Kise smiles weakly. "Don't say that, Kurokocchi, or I'll really get the wrong idea. Aominecchi's never ordered me to do anything before, so it has to be the darkness…right?"

"You can ask him that when we find him," Midorima interrupts. "First, we have to figure out how to get you moving again."

"Shin-chan, you really don't know how to read the atmosphere, do you?" Takao teases.

Midorima waves him off, face reddening. "We don't have time for this, Takao."

"Midorima-kun's right, we need to fix this," Kuroko says. "The only way I can think of is to cut off the command by having someone else order you to do the opposite, but that would require you to take on a new master and that in itself is a high risk."

Kise immediately shakes his head. "I don't want to another master. Even though Aominecchi doesn't want to be mine anymore."

"What are you talking about, Kise-kun?"

"I overheard him and Momocchi talking once," Kise mutters. "It was—"

"Wait, I got it!" Kagami suddenly exclaims, jumping to his feet. "I think I can fix this."

Kuroko stares at him. "Kagami-kun, you, too, have a lot to learn about reading the atmosphere."

He blinks and looks around, obviously to the mood he had just ruined. "What? You got me thinking when you said 'cut off the command', and now I've figured it out. I'm pretty sure it'll work. It's something Alex taught me as part of my training. I'm a little out of practice, but if I do it right, I'll be able to see the energies and connections of all things; so if the command's there, I should be able to do something about it too. I'll need to meditate for a while to focus myself though."

Kise asks, "You won't cut off the connection though, will you?"

"No, I'm sure I'll be able to figure something out when I get to it," Kagami reassures him.

The youkai exchange glances and nod. "It's worth a try."

"Should I set up a barrier or something in case?" he asks.

"No, we'll guard you while you do what you need to," Kuroko tells him.

He stares incredulously at the other and rubs the back of his neck. "No, but Kise's stuck, so maybe I should make one after all…"

"Kagami-kun," Kuroko starts, his voice perfectly serious, "could it be that you don't trust Midorima-kun's fighting abilities?"

"This is clearly about you!" Midorima snaps.

"I mean, it's just that Midorima's a long-range attacker and you're a no-range attacker, so if anything gets too close it'd be bad," he tries, though getting out without any backlash seems well impossible now after his careless words.

"Like Aomine-kun?" Kuroko asks.

Kagami shrugs. "Yeah, exactly like Aomine."

"If he wanted to come, no barrier would be able to keep him out for very long. Besides, there's a very good chance that we'll have to face him later today one way or another. Even you must understand that you'll need every last bit of energy you have against him if you want us to stand a chance. Anyway, Midorima-kun isn't so bad. He knows how to swing a sword and everything."

Midorima scowls, flustered. "Why does this keep coming back around to me?"

"I get it. I'll leave it to you guys then." He sits himself next to Kise and focuses his mind, trying to remember the steps Alex taught him and Tatsuya all those years ago.

_"Close your eyes and focus. Don't let your thoughts stray. Concentrate on your senses and feel the world around you take shape in your mind. Without opening your eyes, look around. Can you see me? Can you see each other? Living things are easiest to pick up but the hardest to focus on because we're so dynamic._

_"Are you getting it? Good. I want you two to practice this until you can see the whole room like this. And then we'll test it by playing hiding and seek! If you fall asleep, you can expect to be punished! And in the meantime, I think I'll go take a nap."_

Focus momentarily slipping thanks to the memory, Kagami takes a deep breath and centers himself. Taking in the sounds and movement around him, when he opens his eyes again, he sees colourful swirls and blurry shapes. Next to him, he sees a flurry of gold, and off to the side, he can see brilliant green and dark amber next to a smoky haze of grey.

"I'm so out of practice. At least it looks like everyone's mostly here," he mutters to himself, looking around for clues.

Suddenly, a flicker catches his eye. He looks back over at Kise's form and focuses harder. As he does, the faint flickering solidifies further until he can make out what appears to be a black thread attached to Kise. He walks over and takes a closer look.

Instead of the black thread, he finds himself looking at a string of blue entwined with darkness. It seems to wrap itself around Kise's feet, keeping him rooted to the ground. "This must be it then."

Without his talismans he touches the thread gingerly and watches the darkness suddenly stop flowing at his fingertips, leaving a spider silk-thin thread of blue behind. As though sensing his intention, a swirl of yellow wraps itself around his arm, protective of the link but hesitant to attack him.

"It's okay. I know what I need to do," he says out loud despite knowing that he won't be heard. "Trust me on this."

Slowly, his arm is released. Wasting no time, Kagami seals off the flow of the darkness by wrapping his own magic down a short length of the thread.

The flurry of gold becomes brighter instantly, it's so bright he can't help but draw back to the real world.

When he opens his eyes again, Kise's in his face with angry tears in his eyes. "Kagamicchi, you said you wouldn't cut it off."

"I didn't," he immediately protests, avoiding the looks he was getting from the others. "I swear I didn't! All I did was cut off the darkness in the link, that's probably why you started feeling worse as we got further in. The connection's still there, it's just a little weak right now. Once you get Aomine back to normal, the link will do the same and you'll probably be stuck again."

The anger fades as quickly as it came and Kise's shoulders sag. "You promise?"

"Yeah, or I can always undo it after, okay?" Kagami promises, trying to placate the other.

Now merely pouting, the inugami nods. "It feels like it's been cut off."

As he finishes speaking, not too far away, a large power seems to erupt out of nowhere.

"It seems like Aomine-kun felt it too," Kuroko says.

"Wait, you mean…"

"Aominecchi's not trying to hide his powers anymore," Kise says. "At least we know we were on the right track."

Kagami gapes. "All that is coming from him?"

"Are you having doubts?" Kuroko asks.

"_So_ many," he mutters. "I don't even know where to start. At least Kise's not stuck anymore. Should we get going? As much as I'm dreading this, in terms of preparation, this is as good as it's gonna get, isn't it?"

Kuroko gives him a pat on the arm. "Try to have more confidence in us, Kagami-kun."

"I have about as much confidence in our success as you do," he mutters.

"As me?" the other asks, blinking. He clears his throat and averts his eyes. "Yes, well, it might be safer to go into this blindly optimistic like Kise-kun."

"Kurokocchi, you're so mean!"

* * *

As they get closer, the pressure in the air continues growing. Like sweltering heat, the power Aomine emits feels heavy and oppressive to the point where every step is a challenge. Nearing the shrine, they stop for a moment to hide their belongings away and to prep for the battle.

The silence is only broken when Kagami asks, "How many people do you think we'll face?"

"The two strongest will be Aomine and Momoi," Midorima says. "And like with the other shrines, there'll probably be a couple of others who were originally in charge of the place—so maybe up to six opponents."

"And what's this Momoi supposed to be?"

"Momoi-san is a yuki-onna," Kuroko explains. "I can probably keep her distracted though."

Midorima nods. "That'll work. Takao and I can take on the others."

"Shin-chan and I are used to fighting together, so we can definitely take on a couple of tengu or whatever else they have over there," Takao adds.

"And I'll keep Aominecchi busy," Kise says, going through the things Kasamatsu had packed for him. He pulls out a second sword and ties it around his waist.

"Are you gonna be alright with going against Aomine?" Kagami asks.

Kise gives him a reassuring smile. "Of course! I feel way better now that you did whatever you did back there. It's like I can barely feel the darkness anymore. And look, I even have my serious sword out! Aominecchi had it made just for me, you know?"

Reaching out, he ruffles the inugami's hair. "As long as you're sure."

"I'm sure. Kagamicchi, since you're the only one who can trap them and turn them back to normal, you just wait for openings to jump in, okay?"

Kuroko turns to him and adds, "It's for the best that you're not caught up in a single fight. The longer the battle goes on for, the less likely we are to win. Please don't hesitate to cut things short, Kagami-kun."

He rubs the back of his neck and frowns. "I know that. I'm just worried about you guys, that's all. And you, why are you taking on the yuki-onna by yourself?"

"Because I'm the one who stands the best chance against her," Kuroko answers confidently.

"It's true," Kise cuts in. "He's Momocchi's greatest weakness, isn't he the coolest?"

"I'm not even going to pretend I understand," he mutters, wondering if this was simply the unconditional love aspect of dogs he's heard so much about.

Midorima huffs. "Humans sure are interesting. Why are you worrying about others when you're the most fragile one here?"

Kagami furrows his brows, confused. "Isn't it normal to care about your friends?"

Takao starts laughing. "If you keep talking like that, Shin-chan will get too embarrassed to fight properly!"

"Shut up, Takao!"

Kise grins and pulls him into a hug. "We care about you too, Kagamicchi!"

"We're counting on you to help us win this battle," Kuroko says with a hint of a smile, holding up his fist.

He nods and returns the gesture. "Just leave it to me."

* * *

When they emerge from the forest, they find themselves in front of a long set of stairs leading to Touou Shrine. And at the top, there's a flame alit in front of the shrine, barely visible through the thick, swirling miasma. "Isn't that the bonfire? Why's it already lit up?" he asks.

"They keep the fire going at all times here. Because the terrain here's so hard to navigate, it's supposed to be a beacon to travellers," Kise explains. "Of course, with the way the shrine's positioned, you can really only see it from certain angles—or if you go in by air."

Kagami shoots him a look and arches his brow.

With a shrug, Kise tells him, "I lived here for a while before Kaijou."

There's a sudden shift in the atmosphere.

Looking up, he finds Aomine standing at the top, watching him. Instead of being swallowed by the miasma like Kise had been, his powers seem to push it aside, clearing the area around him and revealing faint tendrils of darkness emitting from him.

He swallows hard when their eyes meet.

"Kagami-kun, look out!"

The next thing he knows, Aomine is in front of him, his sword raised and ready to strike.

A blur of yellow flashes before his eyes, followed by the distinct sound of metal clashing. His eyes widen when he sees Kise there, having parried the blow. "Are you alright, Kagamicchi?"

"I'm fine, don't worry about me." Out of the corner of his eyes, he can see the others spreading out to take on the other youkai. Smoke quickly spreads around them as Kuroko performs his misdirection to keep the fights separate.

Unfazed by the smoke, Aomine scowls, his eyes glowing blue. "Do you really think this trick will work on me? Get out of the way, Kise."

"No."

"Ryouta, _move_!"

Kise raises his sword. "Sorry, Aominecchi, but your opponent is me."

* * *

Hidden by the smoke, Kagami looks around and calls out, "Hey, Kuroko, can you hear me?"

Large blue eyes appear. "I can hear you just fine, Kagami-kun. You could've died just now, you know?"

"Yeah, I owe Kise big time. Sorry for worrying you," he replies. "But more importantly, take me to where you are. I'll help you out."

"You're not going to fight with the others?"

He shakes his head. "I will, but we'll have a better chance against them if your attention isn't divided."

"Understood."

A path opens up before him, leading him to a small clearing where he finds Kuroko facing a beautiful woman. "Huh, I didn't know you could be in both forms at once."

"It takes a lot of concentration," Kuroko admits quietly. "Please take care not to hurt Momoi-san."

The woman wastes no time, sending a blast of snow at them.

Kagami immediately shivers and conjures up a wall of fire between them.

"Dodge to the right," Kuroko instructs.

He does as he's told only to watch as a large icicle fly through the flames. His heartrate speeds up as he faces yet another near death experience—one was far more than enough never mind two. "You never told me she was more dangerous than Aomine! At least with him, you _know _when you're gonna die!" he complains, dispelling the fire to conserve his energy.

The enenra shrugs. "That may be true, but like me, it wouldn't make sense for Momoi-san to engage in hand-to-hand combat when her powers can keep her safe from a distance."

"Thanks for breaking it down for me, Kuroko," he mutters dryly, "but that really doesn't help us in any way, now, does it? I can't block flying pieces of ice."

Momoi frowns and sends more icicles towards them.

Kuroko fades into the smoke once again while he knocks them away with his staff, surprised at how easily he was able to deflect the attack.

"It's as I expected: she's hesitating," he hears Kuroko's voice by his ear.

He takes the opportunity to attack, but a strong gust of wind blows the talisman away easily. "Well, _that_ didn't work. So what exactly did Kise mean when he said you were her greatest weakness? Can _you_ stop her without hurting her?" Kagami asks, brows furrowed as he tries to think of a plan.

"No, I'm a very impractical weakness, I'm afraid," Kuroko tells him.

"I wish you'd make sense."

"And I wish you'd focus on the fight," he hears Kuroko saying.

Suddenly, a small icicle flies past him, grazing his cheek on the way. He looks over at Momoi to find Kuroko there, pulling her arm back.

The woman winces, looking at the enenra as if seeing him for the first time. "…Tetsu-kun?"

"Yes, it's me, Momoi-san," Kuroko replies.

"I don't want to fight, Tetsu-kun," she says quietly.

"I don't want you to fight either, Momoi-san. Please try to resist it," Kuroko calls out. "Kagami-kun is human; he's here to help us. Kise-kun and Midorima-kun are here too."

Momoi shakes her head. "Ki-chan too? He can't be here." She cradles her head. "Tetsu-kun, I can't stop it. Dai-chan is…" she trails off, suddenly slumping against him.

Kuroko looks up to find them surrounded by a ring of fire. "Kagami-kun?"

Kagami grins, feeling quite pleased with himself. He puts out the fire with the sweep of a hand and wipes the sweat off his brow. "I didn't know if it'd work, but it did. You said no hurting her, right?"

Picking her up, he places her against a tree. "Good thinking, Kagami-kun. Please put a barrier around her. I'll go help Midorima-kun and Takao-kun."

He nods. "I'll be right there."

When Kagami gets to Midorima, he finds the entire area covered in a thick layer of smoke. As he walks, the smoke clears out of his way to avoid suffocating him. "Where are the tengu?" he asks.

"I'm taking care of them," Midorima says, suddenly appearing out of the smoke with his bow drawn.

Perched on his shoulder, Takao's eyes glow for a moment. "A little to the left, Shin-chan. A little more…release."

The arrow goes flying through the smoke and he can hear a yelp, "I'm so sorry!"

"Takao-kun seems to have no trouble seeing through the smoke. They've got one of the tengu pinned to a tree," Kuroko's voice tells him. "This is working out better than I expected."

Midorima glances over. "Never mind us. Go help Kise."

Kagami hesitates for a moment

"_Go_! Or those idiots do something they'll both regret!" Midorima shouts.

Nodding, he turns around and starts running. "Kuroko, do you know where they are?"

"No, they're out of my reach. I'll take you to where I saw them last," Kuroko tells him.

Without any sense of direction in the smoke, he continues running until it suddenly clears up and is replaces by darkness once more. Immediately, he can feel Aomine's unrestrained power in the distance, rivalled only by Kise's. Taking off towards the forest, he pushes through branches and bushes until he finally sees a flash of yellow and blue flying towards the ground.

The impact kicks up a storm of dirt and plants and sends him skidding back.

When it clears again, he sees Aomine with his sword pointed at Kise's throat. "Still weak."

Kise bares his teeth, ears folded back and eyes filled with determination. "Then finish it."

"It's not like I wanted to be your master anyway," Aomine says coldly.

"If that's the case then release me already, Aominecchi" Kise challenges.

At this, Aomine hesitates.

"_I said release me_!"

Grip tightening on his sword, Aomine raises it slowly. "…Ryouta, I…"

* * *

A/N: I decided to give Momoi control over snow and ice because she should totally be a gentle badass. It took a while but here it is! Thanks for waiting!

Yuki-onna: Some legends say the Yuki-onna, being associated with winter and snowstorms, is the spirit of someone who perished in the snow. She is at the same time beautiful and serene, yet ruthless in killing unsuspecting many stories, Yuki-onna appears to travelers trapped in snowstorms, and uses her icy breath to leave them as frost-coated corpses. Other legends say she leads them astray so they simply die of exposure. (wiki)


	11. Happy

Chapter 11: Happy

"Sorry, Aominecchi, but your opponent is me."

Aomine lets out a harsh bark of laughter and raises his blade, meeting his challenge. "You? So you think you can beat me now that you've made a little human friend? Fine, I'll get you out of my way then I'll take care of Tetsu and the rest of them."

Kise swallows hard, trying not to let memories of defeat weigh him down. "Don't you look down on me! I've been practicing hard for this, Aominecchi! Even after you sent me away, I've been preparing! I'll win because I have to—because it's the purpose you gave me. I'll win even if it kills me!"

"Go ahead and try."

Their swords meet for a moment. He parries to the right and leaps into the air to dodge a low sweep. Turning around, he raises his sword to block another blow from behind. Something akin to excitement pricks at his mind. He hasn't felt such a thrill since their last spar, which was so, so many years ago.

"Not bad," Aomine admits. "Never thought you could pull it off."

He scoffs and leaps up, using gravity to add more strength to his attack. "Who do you think sparred with you every day—and lost every day? I'm the one who knows you best."

"Oh? Then you know I've only just warmed up. Besides, have you considered the opposite?" Cracking his neck, Aomine rushes forward again, even faster this time. "I know you can't even copy me."

Relying on his instincts, he raises his sword to block, but nothing comes. He shoulders relax for a moment before Aomine suddenly speeds up again and connects the attack. The sheer strength of the blow sends him flying back into a tree.

Kise rubs the back of his head with a slight pout. "Damn, he's still so cool…" he mutters. "How unfair."

Aomine lands in front of him and frowns. "Is that all you've got?"

"How unfair," he says again. "You've left me no choice, Aominecchi. I've known all along why I couldn't copy you. I admired you so much that I kept wishing I'd never have to see you lose." Standing up, he sheaths his sword. "You're the one who gave me a new purpose and I wanted to be just like you. But maybe it's time I grow out of that.

"That's why I'll quit admiring you."

Sensing a change in the atmosphere, Aomine tenses up and tightens his grip on his sword.

"This sword that you gave me that day," Kise lightly brushes the blue tassel, "it's too heavy for me, and my reaction time and attack power suffered because of it. You knew that, didn't you? That's why you had this one made for me. Let's test it out, shall we?" He unsheathes his other sword and takes his stance. "Aominecchi, here I come."

Aomine's eyes widen when a flash of yellow suddenly appears in front of him. Parrying the blow, he reaches around the blocks another attack. He grits his teeth and swings down only to be parried. Doing a back flip, he puts a little distance between them before rushing forward.

Eyes glowing, Kise deflects the attack and swings upwards, managing to land a cut on the other's upper torso. The blood surprises him. Even though he should've known better, he never expected someone as great as Aomine to bleed. Suddenly, there's a kick to his stomach, sending him to the ground. Coughing, he leaps back onto his feet and scowls.

"Oi, Kise, don't think you've won just because you got one little cut in. If you've got time to worry, use it to attack," Aomine snaps.

He grins and wipes the sweat off his brow. "I would've been disappointed if you went down so easily."

The two of them lunge at each other again.

The feint catches him off guard and he loses his balance for a moment.

There's a sudden pain his side. Kise looks down to find his robes stained red. Another blur of black and blue appears to his other side. There's a sharp kick to his ankle that sends him falling. Leaping back up, he twists around towards the other swinging his blade in a wide arc.

Aomine leaps back, easily avoiding the attack, his expression indifferent. But even so, Kise's ears prick up when he catches the other muttering, "This is why I sent you away, Kise."

His chest tightens at the words, but he gives a weary smile and raises his sword. "Then let's end this, Aominecchi."

From afar, he senses Kagami's powers flare and Momoi's disappear and wonders how the others are faring. Using their temporary distance, he takes the opportunity and rushes Aomine, taking their battle to the sky.

Unfazed by the height, Aomine continues exchanging blows with him.

Below them, he can't see past Kuroko's smoke, but he can sense them running around.

"Where do you think you're looking?" he hears next to his ear.

His eyes widen as he blocks another attack from above. But instead of pulling back, Aomine continues pushing down. They go crashing back down to the ground, each struggling to pin the other down.

A hand reaches out and grabs him by the shoulder, twisting them around in midair.

The next thing he knows, the wind is knocked out of him as he hits the ground, sandwiched between the dirt and Aomine. Pain shoots up his spine and his side. Coughing, he gropes around for his sword only to have it knocked out of his hand.

The cloud of dust clears and there's a sword at his throat.

"Still weak," Aomine says with contempt.

"Then finish it," he challenges.

Narrowing his eyes, in a cold voice, Aomine tells him, "It's not like I wanted to be your master anyway."

"If that's the case then release me already, Aominecchi," Kise bites back, eyes never leaving the other's.

Aomine pauses, suddenly unsure.

Fists balled up, he shouts, _"I said release me!" _

Grip tightening on his sword, Aomine raises it slowly. "…Ryouta, I…"

Suddenly, the weight disappears off of him as Kagami goes crashing into the Shoumen Kongou. Caught off guard, Aomine goes flying to the ground where a barrier forms around him.

Sitting up, eyes wide in disbelief, Kise stares at the onmyouji. "Kagamicchi?"

"Are you completely stupid, Kise!?" Kagami snaps back. "What were you thinking!? What would you've done if he really tried to release you!?"

"I just thought—" Pulling the other back, he leaps to his feet unsteadily and unsheathes his other sword to block another attack. It's only under the strength of the attack that he notices his ankle throbbing. "Never mind that, Kagamicchi, we need to finish this first."

Kagami nods and takes out more of his talismans.

Aomine frowns, eyes travelling from one to the other. With the sweep of his sword, he destroys to barrier around him. "Looks like you saved me the trouble of going back to kill you."

"Maybe I should be the distraction this time since he seems really set on killing me," Kagami mutters.

Retrieving his sword from the ground, Kise laughs. "Maybe I should be jealous that Aominecchi sees you as a bigger threat than me. Let's end this quickly, the bleeding doesn't seem to be stopping," he says, glancing down his side where a streak of red is running down the length of his robes.

"Right. I'll try trapping him again, but if it doesn't work, I need you to find a way to keep him still, got it?" Kagami asks.

"Understood," Kise tells him, charging towards Aomine.

Aomine raises his sword to counter, but he feints and attacks from the side. Twisting around, Aomine manages to use the hilt to mitigate the damage done. Around them, walls of light begin to form and shrink, trapping them inside.

Dropping his sword, Kise swoops around behind Aomine and locks his arms around the other, trying to keep him still.

Not wasting any time, Kagami begins his chant.

Struggling to get out of Kise's grasp, Aomine twists and jams his elbow into the inugami's injured side. "You think something like this is enough to stop me? Let go of me, you stupid dog."

"I can't," Kise grits out.

"Then I'll just have to make you."

There's a burst of power fused with darkness, forcing Kagami to stop and put up a shield around him. Once it clears, he sees that his barrier's been completely destroyed and Kise's on the ground, clutching at his wound.

Aomine grins ferally as their eyes meet. "It's time to end this."

Kagami gulps and readies his staff for battle, his mind racing to come up with a way to win this battle without exorcising the other. Then, from up above, something catches his eyes.

The youkai leans forward, prepared to lunge, when his eyes suddenly widen. He looks down only to find his feet frozen to the ground. "Satsuki, what are you doing!?" he shouts as snow begins to fall around them, melting upon contact with the ground.

Taking the opportunity, Kagami quickly begins the chant again, purifying the area before focusing on the youkai.

Aomine tugs at his feet, trying to break them free, but, deeply rooted to the ground, the ice doesn't even budge.

"Momocchi," Kise mutters, slowly picking himself up off the ground. Worn out and tired, he limps his way over to Aomine and sits down. "It's over, Aominecchi."

"The only one who can win against me is _me_," Aomine growls.

Kise chuckles humourlessly. "That may be so on a one-on-one basis, but not even you can beat a whole team of people on your own. I remember I was…scared when I had to go through this in Kaijou, but Kurokocchi was there and that made it easier; so I'll be right here, Aominecchi, until it's finally over. And when you wake up, I'll be here still, just like you were that time you saved me."

Eyes softening, Aomine opens his mouth to say something only to wince. He clutches his head and grits his teeth. "Weak. So weak! How dare they act so high and mighty when we could so easily crush them? I'll become even stronger and make them pay for what they've done!"

The ice around the youkai's feet disappear and he falls to his knees.

"Satsuki…Ryouta…"

"We're still here, Aominecchi," Kise says softly.

"Weak. Every single one of them. The more effort I put in, the more boring it becomes. What's the point? The rival I keep looking for…I'll never find him! So weak…" The glow fades from his eyes. "The only one who can win against me…is me."

The pressure in the atmosphere suddenly disappears as Aomine falls unconscious. Finishing his spell, Kagami's knees give out and he falls back onto the ground. "Well, that's finally done." Pushing himself back up, he makes his way over to Kise. "Are you alright?"

Kise pulls out the charm that was made for him to repel the darkness, now tainted black and falling apart. "The darkness was really strong around Aominecchi. I think that's why my side wouldn't stop bleeding."

"Hold still, I'll widen this barrier." Adjusting his wards, he purifies the darkness around Kise and pulls a talisman out of his sleeve to quickly create another charm from it.

"Thank you, Kagamicchi. Go back and help the others. It looks like I've become stuck again," the inugami says ruefully. "And maybe when you're done, get Midorimacchi to come over to help?"

Kagami nods. "I'll be right back then." He pauses mid-step and looks back. "Oh, and Kise?"

"Yes?"

"You did good—though we're still having that talk later, and the others will probably want to yell at you too."

Kise grins. "Understood."

* * *

With the rest of the tengu taken care of and the shrine mostly purified, they reconvene in the forest where Kise and the still unconscious Aomine are. Midorima quickly sets about dressing their wounds, all while lecturing the inugami on being so reckless.

"What were you thinking telling him to release you?" Kagami asks, joining in with Kuroko.

"Decided to join in the fun, hmm?" Kise asks with a tired smile. "I had no intention of dying, Kagamicchi. If anything, I've never wanted to live more. I just thought if he couldn't give me orders then he probably couldn't release me either. Was I wrong?"

He shrugs. "I couldn't say for sure."

"But what would you've done if it worked, Kise-kun," Kuroko asks, his voice full of disapproval.

Kise shakes his head. "I didn't think that far ahead. I guess I just wanted to know if he'd really do it. I didn't mean to make you guys worried."

"Tetsu-kun?" a voice interrupts. "We brought you food. It'll be night time soon."

"Thank you. We're over here, Momoi-san," Kuroko calls back.

Momoi appears with the tengu behind her. "Ki-chan!"

Tail wagging, Kise smiles. "Momocchi, it's been a while. You really saved us back there!"

"I've been meaning to ask, how'd you know where we were?" Kagami asks.

"It started snowing, right? It's kind of like Kurokocchi's smoke where she can see everything the snow touches without having to be there. Momocchi's actually really strong," Kise explains. "Oh, are those offerings from the shrine?"

"Yes," Momoi replies. "Ever since you went to Kaijou, we've had more food than we knew what to do with so we started feeding strays and wild animals—but they all left when this darkness came in."

Kagami arches a brow and Kuroko shrugs. "Where did you think the all food offerings went, Kagami-kun?"

"The people who take care of the shrine?" he suggests.

"Under normal circumstances, maybe," Momoi says. "But Touou Shrine hasn't had a human keeper since…well, it's been a very long time now. Usually, Dai-chan or I go to greet the people."

Crossing his arms in thought, Kagami nods. "At least that explains why Aomine was so good at disguising himself as a human."

He reaches out to help one of the tengu with their load only to have the youkai shrink back fearfully with an, "I'm sorry!"

Kagami blinks. "Huh!? Why are you apologizing?"

From Midorima's side, Takao begins laughing. "He apologized the whole time we were fighting as well, didn't he, Shin-chan?"

Another tengu chuckles and shakes his head. "Sakurai, you're gonna scare them if you act like this. These guys are clearly on an epic journey to rid the land of evil."

He doesn't even bother trying to deny it anymore.

"That's not what I meant to…I'm really sorry for being alive!"

"No, that's—you're sorry for being alive!?"

Momoi quickly interrupts them. "We haven't done introductions yet, have we? This is Imayoshi-san and Sakurai-kun, and Wakamatsu-kun is just bringing over some firewood in case Dai-chan doesn't wake up by nightfall. They help run Touou Shrine."

Kuroko studies the tengu closely. "Could it be that these three are the rumours monkeys that follow the Shoumen Kongou around?"

Sakurai nearly drops the food onto the ground in horror. "_Monkeys_?"

This gets a laugh out of Momoi. "Oh, Tetsu-kun, you're still so funny!"

Something clicks in Kagami's brain as he watches the two interact and he turns to Kise, a half-eaten rice ball in his hand. "When you said he was her greatest weakness…"

"You finally figured it out, hmm? Momoicchi's totally in love with Kurokocchi," Kise answers.

"Oh, I thought she just had a really weird sense of humour—wait, what!?" he blurts.

"She actually likes him?" Midorima asks seriously.

Kise stares at the two in disbelief. "Kagamicchi I can kind of understand, but Midorimacchi, you seriously had no idea even after all this time?"

"It's because Shin-chan's no good at picking up on these things," Takao chimes in.

Face flushing, Midorima stands up. "Be quiet, you two! I had more important things to worry about! I-I'm going to go look for herbs and firewood before the sun sets!"

"Wait for me, Shin-chan! I'll come with you!"

Laughing as the two run off, Kise licks the rice off his fingers and reaches for another. "You know, you guys don't have to stay out here tonight. I can wait for Aominecchi to wake up on my own; I don't mind. It gets pretty chilly here at night with so little to block the wind."

Kagami shrugs. "I don't really mind. We have a pretty good fire going here."

"Yes, but you should take advantage of being at a shrine. It can't be good for a human like you to stay out in this kind of weather every night. Besides," Kise says with a sniff, "you could really use a bath, Kagamicchi."

"Kise-kun is right, Kagami-kun," Kuroko says, suddenly appearing.

The two of them give a start. "Don't sneak up like that, Kuroko!"

"I've been here for a while now. I was going to get a bite to eat, but it seems like you and Kise-kun have finished everything off already."

Confused, he looks down at the empty tray. "Oh, when did _that_ happen?"

"I have some food I made if you'd like, Tetsu-kun," Momoi offers.

Everyone around them seems to freeze for moment. Kagami looks around and blinks, not understanding why the offer of more food would elicit such a reaction. "More food? Why not?" he says before anyone can stop him.

He quickly realizes his mistake when the 'food' is brought out.

* * *

Walking back towards the shrine with their supplies gathered in their arms, Kagami can't help but ask, "Was it a good idea leaving them there? Do you think those they'll be alright?"

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Kuroko reassures him, sweat dripping down his face as he makes his way up the stairs, "because they're both idiots."

"It's probably better that you're not there, onmyouji-sama," Imayoshi says lightly with an unreadable smile on his face.

He arches a brow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"No, it's nothing against you, Kagami-kun, or I don't think so at least," Momoi says.

"That's not very reassuring. He _did_ try pretty hard to kill me today."

"It's probably because of that thing you did to Kise," Midorima suggests.

"You did something to Ki-chan? That could be it," Momoi says. "But even if that wasn't the case, Dai-chan just doesn't like people very much."

Wakamatsu scoffs. "Does like people very much? It's more like he outright hates them. He's the one who chased the priests and monks away from the shrine in the first place, isn't he? I like you just fine, Momoi, but Aomine gets on my nerves! He just showed up on Imayoshi-san's mountain one day and started acting like he owned the place; then he kicked the humans out made Sakurai cook for him and his dog."

"Huh? I'm sorry!" Sakurai immediately blurts, snapping to attention.

Imayoshi shrugs. "I personally didn't mind since I heard about his arrival beforehand. He's certainly kept this shrine safe since his arrival."

"But his _attitude_!" Wakamatsu argues. "He may be strong, but he didn't have to takes things so far!"

Momoi frowns. "It may be true that Dai-chan's no good at doing things tactfully, but he did do it for a reason. If it's about getting a new human keeper after all this is over, I'll talk to him again when he and Ki-chan come back. I hope they don't rough each other up too much though. I mean, they're both still injured and all."

Furrowing his brow, Kagami asks again, "Are you _sure _they'll be okay on their own?"

* * *

Looming over the mountains, the moon glows brightly in the sky, lighting up bits of the forest floor. His ears twitch and he opens his eyes when a rustle wakes him. He looks around for anything amiss before turning his attention to the youkai next to him who shifts and slowly opens his eyes, groggy and half-asleep still.

In a daze, Aomine sits up and turns his head. "Kise…?"

"Aominecchi, you're up," Kise says, tail thumping slowly.

"Kise, you…" Completely awake now, Aomine reaches out slowly, "_idiot!_"

"Ow!" he yelps, clutching his head. "What was that for!?"

"For everything today! Do you have a death wish!? What would you have done if, by some ridiculous and pretty much impossible miracle, you'd won!?"

"Hey!"

Aomine smacks him on the head again. "And even worse! What was with you telling me to release you!? Have you come to hate being mine so much that you'd rather _die_!?"

Reaching out and pulling at Aomine's hair, Kise retorts, "I don't hate it at all! Aren't _you_ the one who hates being my master!?"

"What are you talking about!?" he snaps, starting a fist fight with the inugami.

"Before that, take back your order and let me move again!"

"No way! Just stay there and let me hit you for your stupidity! When did I say I hated being your master!?" Aomine demands.

"I overheard you talking to Momocchi before you sent me to Kaijou! And you said it again today!"

"That's not what I meant!" Aomine yells in frustration. "The reason I said that to Satsuki was because I was a threat to your life! Like today, do you know how hard I had to fight to not let myself say those words back there?"

Kise frowns. "But you said you never wanted to be my master—"

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Aomine runs a hand through his hair. "Only because I never planned on it, but I don't regret it. If anything, you made things fun for me. I only became this strong because of you—to keep you from beating me, at least until I could think of a better purpose to give you. If I didn't want to be your master, I would've told you a long time ago, Kise."

"I don't understand," Kise says softly. "Is that why you sent me to Kaijou then? Because you were afraid you'd release me?"

"Yeah, by then, I could already feel the darkness growing and getting closer to Touou. But even more than that, Kaijou's by the sea, isn't it?"

He blinks. "What does the sea have to do with anything?"

Aomine shrugs. "You were always going on about seeing the ocean, so when Akashi said I could choose another region on top of Touou, I picked Kaijou. Strong youkai to fight, the ocean nearby, and good food…I thought it would make you happy."

Tears pricking at his eyes, Kise clenches his fists in his lap. "Aominecchi, you idiot. Why are you always so stupid!? Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" he shouts. "I won't understand unless you tell me these things! I wasn't born a human or youkai, and I haven't been one long enough for these kinds of thoughts to come naturally to me. I just…I wanted to see the ocean with _you_."

"Yeah, I get that now," Aomine says gently. "I made you lonely, didn't I? Sorry."

Kise shakes his head, wiping his tears away with his sleeve. "No, I wasn't lonely. Even though I couldn't see you, I wasn't lonely because I had Kasamatsu-senpai and everyone at the shrine. They taught me lots of new things and made every day fun for me. Don't you know? I'm known as the Kaijou Inugami now. They gave me a home to go back to, but…but I still missed you every single day, Aominecchi."

"Ryouta."

"Huh?" He looks up to see Aomine with his arms spread.

"Come here."

With tears running down his cheeks, he wraps his arms around Aomine's neck. "All this time, I thought you didn't want me around anymore…I missed you, Aominecchi."

Wrapping his arms tightly around the inugami's waist, he chuckles. "Idiot. I've never once thought that, so don't go around trying to get yourself killed again, okay?"

Ears flattening, Kise sighs, "But I wasn't trying to—yeah, okay."

"Promise me."

"I promise."

Satisfied, Aomine nods to himself. "Good, now what was that about not admiring me anymore?"

"I know you're my master but I want to be your equal from now on," Kise tells him, determination alight in his eyes, "like how you are with Momocchi. I don't need you to protect me from the world anymore, Aominecchi, and from now on, don't hold back when we spar!"

Aomine blinks before snorting. "Stupid. Satsuki doesn't even fight. And when have I ever held back against you? I just kept getting stronger 'cause I couldn't let you beat me."

Kise pouts. "But I'll beat you one day for sure, right?"

"You're still _at least _a hundred years too early to be saying that," Aomine teases. "But let me give you a new purpose so I won't have to worry when that day comes. Ryouta, I want you to do what makes you happy, and if that means trying to beat me, then you can keep trying; that's your new purpose."

"That's it?" he asks. "Do what makes me happy? But what if I don't know what makes me happy?"

"Then I guess it's your job to find something that does. And when you find it, and things don't go your way, you'll just have to pick yourself up and try again, alright?" Reaching out, Aomine grins and ruffles his hair. "Now, since you don't want me to go easy on you, does that mean you don't want a ride back up to the shrine?"

"I do!" Kise immediately protests. "My foot's hurt, Aomineecchi! Carry me!"

Aomine sighs in mock-exasperation. "Fine, but on the way, you're gonna tell me about this human you've been travelling with."

* * *

A/N: I'm quite proud of myself for not taking a month to get this up. I don't think there are any notes to write for this chapter but look! An omake!

* * *

**Omake: Monkeys**

"So Tetsu-kun's heard of all the rumours about Dai-chan then?" Momoi asks.

Kuroko nods. "Yes, we were all surprised to hear how famous he's become around these parts."

"Yes, but I can't imagine where they got the idea of monkey companions. Maybe it's because of the ones that live in this area? They're rarely seen around the shrine though," Momoi mutters in thought.

"I think I can see it though," he says. "If they were monkey youkai, Imayoshi-san would be the one that sees no evil—even if it's only because he looks like the type who'd turn a blind eye on a lot of things."

Imayoshi turns away with his usual smile. "I'm going to pretend that didn't happen."

"Sakurai-kun would be the one that speaks no evil," Kuroko continues.

"I'm sorry!" Sakurai immediately yells. "I'm really sorry!"

"And Wakamatsu-kun would hear no evil?" Momoi finishes for him.

Wakamatsu frowns. "What did you say!?"

Letting out a laugh, Momoi says, "You know, I can kind of see it now that you put it this way. Just make sure you don't tell Dai-chan or he'll never let them hear the end of it."

"Doesn't that makes Aomine-kun the ultimate monkey who sees, hears, _and_ speaks evil then?"


	12. Interlude: Momoi

Interlude: Momoi

Snow.

Everywhere she went—snow.

Suddenly, there's weight on her head.

She looks up only to see dead, beady eyes staring back at her.

"Hey, Satsuki, look! A frozen frog!"

Earlier thoughts forgotten, she starts crying and sends a blast of snow flying into her friend's face.

* * *

She still hasn't fully mastered her powers when their master disappears. Their energy disappears one day and search as they did, their master was nowhere to be found. With no experience or power to defend themselves, they shied away from other youkai lest they turn out dangerous. And as the seasons passed, it dawns on the two of them that they're truly alone.

Sitting around idly after a short, impromptu training session, Aomine suddenly says, "Hey, Satsuki, tell me your real name."

Frowning, Momoi huffs. "Why would I want to do that?"

Aomine shrugs. "Just tell me. I'll protect you."

"Like I need you to protect me, Dai-chan. You're not even that strong despite all your arms," she teases. "Maybe _you _should tell me your real name instead."

He stomps his foot and complains, "Don't look down on me! I'll get stronger, you'll see!"

She doesn't doubt that. "Why do you even want my real name? I don't want to be bossed around by you."

"No, I wasn't gonna order you to do stuff or anything. I just figured we should stick together, and this way, I don't have to stop calling you Satsuki," Aomine mutters sulkily.

"Do I still get to call you Dai-chan, then?"

Aomine nods. "That was the idea."

"And you won't disappear like Master did?"

"I won't. I swear it," he says, his youthful face solemn.

Warmed by the thought and the sincerity of the promise, Momoi agrees.

* * *

They never grow particularly dependant on one another. Throughout the year, Aomine travelled and grew stronger with each passing experience while she remained close to the mountain, unable stray too far for too long in fear of the summer heat.

Winter was just starting to melt away when she decided to journey down to see how the villages fared. Aomine would've been with her, but he had to go off to meet with some big youkai in the north. The last she saw, they were huddled in their houses, stoking their fires, and sleeping for most of the day with some never opening their eyes again the next day.

She's walking around the outskirts of a nearby village when she hears a rustling in the bushes and a soft, "Excuse me."

Freezing on the spot, Momoi turns around to see a little girl standing there. Suddenly confused, she takes a look around, expecting to see another human. As curious as she is about these creatures, they're not supposed to be able to see her.

"I'm talking to you," the girls says. "There's no one else around."

"You can see me?" Momoi asks.

The girl laughs. "Of course I can, how else could I be talking to you?" Then her eyes widen in realization. "Oh, if I'm not supposed to be able to see you, then that makes you a youkai, doesn't it? You don't look like a youkai, not like the other ones around here. Mother said I wasn't supposed to talk to them anymore."

"Anymore? Do you normally go around talking to youkai?"

"It's not like I have anyone else to talk to," the girl tells her. "Father was the only one who understood. He used to be the village priest but he's gone now, and the kids never want to talk to me because I can see things they can't. They say it's not normal."

Momoi frowns softly. "Somehow, that sounds very human of them."

The girl blinks. "Does it? I guess you would know. Say, how old are you? You don't look that much older than me. Do youkai age differently? I'm 11 years old."

"Only? Really? I'm far older than you then," Momoi says. "I can't even remember being only 11 years old. I didn't realize humans grew so fast. That's probably why your lives are so much shorter than our, I guess. Wait, I thought you weren't supposed to talk to youkai?"

With a shrug the girl says, "Only the bad ones, and you don't seem bad. My name is Miki, what about you?"

"Momoi," she returns, "but my friend calls me Satsuki."

"So even youkai have friends," Miki says in wonder. "I guess it's just me then."

She tries to imagine a world without Aomine—even if he _did_ go around putting frozen frogs on her head every now and then. Heart reaching out in sympathy, Momoi blurts, "I wouldn't mind being friends with you. You…you could teach me about humans! I've never met a human before and you seem decent enough. You have to promise not to tell anyone about me, though."

Miki's eyes brighten, her childish features giving away to a ready smile. "Really? I promise! You can teach me about youkai!"

"I don't know how much I can tell you, there are so many different kinds and I haven't met too many of them up on the mountain," Momoi admits. It's not that she didn't want to, it was simply that mountain peaks weren't home to all that many—though some simply didn't deign to extend a greeting. "My friend, Dai-chan, has got six arms and blue skin though…"

And so Momoi spent the rest of spring out on the outskirts of the village, only retreating back to the peaks when summer and the inevitable heat came.

Reaching the snowy peaks, frozen all year round, she finds Aomine napping and waiting for her. It's not that she's surprised by his presence, it's just that her brain hasn't quite gotten used to the idea of being able to see one friend after another when she has only ever had one. "Dai-chan? What are you doing here?"

Eyes opening sleepily, Aomine furrows his brows and looks over at her. "Oh, there you are, Satsuki. Where've you been? It's not like you to stay out so late in the season. What if there was a heat wave?" There's an underlying tinge of concern in his voice despite the nonchalant expression on his face.

"I was careful," she reassures him. "It's just that I made a friend…with a human child. In fact, I promised I'd go back to play with her again when autumn comes." She watches her friend, waiting for a reaction. In the back of her mind, a voice, full of new knowledge, points out that Aomine looks no older than 14 in human years.

Aomine frowns and rubs the back of his neck, confused and sheepish. "A human? Why would you want to go play with them? They're all weak. Besides, they shouldn't be able to see us in the first place."

Eager to share more about her new friend, she says, "Micchan is different. She's the only who can see us in the village, I think. I even tried walking around for a bit, but no one looked at me at all. Her dad was a priest—"

"Aren't priests the ones that exorcise youkai?" Aomine cuts in.

"Yes, but Micchan's not one and her dad's dead and we're _friends_, Dai-chan," Momoi insists.

Looking away, Aomine mutters, "I still don't think humans should be able to see youkai."

While she understood and appreciated his concern, that doesn't mean she has to like what he's saying. "You can come with me to meet her in autumn if you'd like. I'll _show_ you how nice she is. I told her all about you anyway. She said she'd never seen anything with six arms before except insects."

"Shut up," Aomine huffs self-consciously, crossing his arms in an attempt to make them stand out less. Their master had left them before their lessons were complete, and Aomine's been trying to figure out how to change his appearance as of late but to no avail. "I met a couple of youkai up in the north; they're strong and they said we could go join them. We could go in the winter. It'll be safer with them and you'll have more company."

Momoi hesitates, not fond of the idea of leaving her new friend. "I'll have to think about it."

* * *

She goes back to the village in the fall. Alone. Though Aomine promised to pay her a visit before the season was up to meet Miki, his reluctance was obvious. And that was fine, because upon spotting her at their appointed rendezvous point, Miki's face lit up. "You really came back, Sacchan!"

"Youkai always keep their promises," Momoi tells her.

"But you also told me that youkai sometimes lie," the girl points out. Then she quickly adds, "I didn't think you were lying or anything though! I'm just happy that you're back! We'll have to stay out of the village though. A couple of travelling priests came by and they're staying for a while, I think."

Momoi tenses, suddenly wary of her proximity to the village. "Priests?"

Miki nods. "I don't like them, but we're not allowed to turn them away. It'd be bad for the village. We'll just have to play further away from the village. You could pass for a human anyway."

The girl wasn't wrong. On the outside, she could easily pass for a human, but with her powers unchecked, it'd be easy for a trained priest to detect her. And when Aomine comes to visit as promised, whenever that may be, there'd be no chance of them hiding his identity from anyone who could see into their world. Fear gripping her, she takes a step back. "Micchan, I don't think I should come back until they're gone."

"Are you afraid of them?" Miki asks seriously. When Momoi nods in response, she suggests, "Maybe I could go over to the mountain pass to meet you? It's pretty far away and the priests only ever stay inside the village it seems."

Not wanting to pass up the opportunity to spend time with her friend, Momoi agrees.

* * *

The meetings at the mountain pass went well until about half way through the season. They were playing as usual, climbing trees and collecting acorns off the ground in hopes of finding a tanuki to trade with, when they heard a noise from afar. Curious, the two of them snuck over and hid behind a bush to spy on the group of men that had set up camp.

"I think they're mountain bandits," Miki whispers to her, chewing on her lower lip in worry. "They don't normally come so close to the village. I shouldn't be here. I have to go tell mother and the chief about them before they cause any trouble."

Momoi nods. "Alright."

But as the girl tries to take a step back, her foot slips and she tumbles backwards, the noise alerting the bandits of her presence.

"Who's there?" one man yells out.

Watching the men approach, Momoi looks back at her friend, who sat on the ground, frozen with fear, and stands up. Determined to defend the girl, she raises a hand and concentrates all her energy to the palm of her hand, suddenly wishing that their master had taught her more before leaving. When she opens her eyes again, she nearly falls back in shock at the sight of the bandits, ready to attack but frozen solid.

A tired smile graces her lips.

She did it.

She defended her friend.

But when she looks back at Miki, she finds the other watching her with fear in her eyes. "Micchan? Are you alright? Look, they can't hurt you anymore."

Momoi reaches out, but the girl scrambles back, shaking. "You _killed_ them, you monster!" She gets up and takes another step back. "I..I need to go tell someone. The chief will know what to do!"

"Wait, you can't tell them about me," Momoi calls out, chasing after the girl. "You promised!"

"Stay away!" With a backwards glance, the girl veers sharply to the right and continues running until she suddenly disappears.

Following, Momoi slows down and looks around the area, wondering where the human had gone. "Micchan?" she calls out.

Then she spots the girl.

* * *

Aomine comes out the find her when a sudden blizzard hits the mountains. He finds her sitting at the bottom of a cliff next to the frozen body of a little girl and crying. "Oi, Satsuki, are you the one making it snow? What happened? Are you alright?"

She turns to him, her tears turning to ice as they roll down her face. "Dai-chan, why did she run from me? I was just trying to protect her from the bandits! She said she was going to tell even though she promised me…why did she run?"

He clenches his fist and grits his teeth. "See? This is why humans shouldn't be able to see youkai!" he roars, the ground shaking beneath his feet at his fury.

"But she was my _friend_," Momoi cries. "Why would she break her promise, Dai-chan? I don't understand. What did I do wrong?"

Softening, he sighs and sits down in the snow, letting her hug him. "You didn't do anything wrong. It's because they're weak and easily scared," he says evenly, keeping his voice calm despite the rage flowing through his veins. "We're youkai. We're too different from them. Nothing good comes from associating with humans, Satsuki."

When the snow finally stops along with Momoi's tears, she mutters quietly, worn out and heartbroken, "I don't want to be here anymore, Dai-chan. Let's leave."

Aomine helps her up and nods. "We'll go north and join the others. No human will ever hurt you again, I swear it."

* * *

"_But she was my friend…"_

"_I just want to live…"_

Nothing good ever came from being associated with humans.

He could still remember the tears in their eyes as they looked up at him and asked, _"Why?"_

"_Why did she run?"_

"_Why did he leave?"_

He had been so desperate to protect them, but somewhere along the line, everything went horribly wrong. Fist unclenching, he exhales and opens his eyes from his nap. Looking around, Aomine frowns when he finds the shrine empty save for the usual tengu doing their daily chores. The scene around him is so normal a part of him wonders if he'd dreamt everything up about Kise and Kuroko—and the onmyouji. He gets up and stretches when suddenly, he feels a flare of power in the distance.

Kise's and a human's.

Tensing up, he takes off towards the forest with his weapon out only to find the inugami prancing around in the air with a sword in his hand and laughing. Beneath him, the human is running after him complaining while Momoi and Midorima stand to the side and watch.

"You'll have to do better than that if you want to win against me, Kagamicchi!" Kise taunts, his tail wagging idly.

"Hey, that's cheating, Kise! If you get to fly, then I get to use magic," the onmyouji declares, taking out his talismans.

Arching a brow, Kise smirks. "Magic? If you use magic then I'll just do this!" He shifts into his dog form and begins barking at the man and running towards him. Kagami immediately jumps back with a yelp and scampers off to get away from the dog.

"They look like they're having fun, don't they?" a voice suddenly from next to him.

Aomine jumps back in surprise, weapon gripped tightly in his hand. "Tetsu, don't sneak up on me like that! I could've killed you!"

He may have been used to it at one point, but that was a long time ago.

"How rude, I was standing here all this time," Kuroko says.

Scoffing, he sheaths his blade and points out, "Liar. If you were over here, Satsuki wouldn't be standing all the way over there with Midorima."

Kuroko looks up at him and blinks slowly. "Aomine-kun, it seems like you've gotten surprisingly smarter since the last time we met."

"Hey," he snaps. "Who's the rude one now?"

Returning his gaze to the spar where Kise's gone and chased Kagami up a tree, the enenra tells him, "When you ran over here, you looked very worried about something. Could it be that you thought Kagami-kun was hurting Kise-kun?"

Aomine watches the dog circle around the tree a few times, his tail wagging happily at the game. The onmyouji's sitting on a branch and setting up a barrier around himself. To the side, Momoi's laughing while Midorima shakes his head in disapproval. Suddenly, the tengu that came with Midorima, Takao, swoops in and lifts the dog up to Kagami's level.

Caught off guard by the unexpected arrival of the tengu, Kagami nearly falls back off the branch, but manages to keep himself steady by hugging the trunk of the tree.

"If anything, it looks like the human's the one who's gonna get hurt. Why did he think he could win against a youkai in a sparring match?" Aomine mutters.

Kuroko spares him a glance and replies lightly, "Humans may be weaker than us, but you shouldn't underestimate them, Aomine-kun."

"I know. I know that better than most, I think." He lets out a sigh and asks, "Where did I go wrong, Tetsu?" All he had wanted to do was keep those around him safe. But instead, he found himself shrouded in darkness and unable to stop himself from attacking those he wanted safe. "How did I get to the point where I needed help from a human? Was I not strong enough?"

"You are strong, Aomine-kun. There's no doubt about that. But maybe that was the problem."

He arches a brow. "What do you mean?"

Instead of answering, Kuroko says, "It's difficult watching someone you care for get hurt, isn't it? For those who've faced something terrible, they're required to muster the courage to overcome it and to face the future and move on. But for those who had to witness them face such an ordeal, how do you get over it? I don't think you ever get over the feeling of wanting to keep them safe from the world, but I think you let that feeling take over, Aomine-kun.

"I heard that Touou Shrine used to house some of the strongest people in the region. I wonder if they might've been able to slow the darkness down, but you banished all the humans from this shrine because Momoi-san and Kise-kun were hurt by humans before, right? Then, when you sensed that you were a threat to Kise-kun, you sent him away. You took everything into your own hands because you're strong. You've always been the type to take over a fight without asking."

"What would you have done instead, then?" he asks through gritted teeth.

"I would've talked to them," Kuroko says. "I'm not saying you were in the wrong and I don't think either of them are angry with you. It's just that if I were in their place, I think I would've been lonely watching you shoulder the burden on your own and deciding on your own how to best shield them."

Aomine's shoulders sag as he remembers his talk with Kise.

"_All this time, I thought you didn't want me around anymore…"_

Quietly, he admits, "I just wanted to keep them safe."

Kuroko places a hand on his arm gently. "They know. Talk to them, Aomine-kun, and let them tell you how to best help them. In the time you've spent standing in front of them as a shield, maybe they've grown more than you expected. Maybe instead of standing behind you, they want to stand by your side."

He doesn't answer and turns back to the spar where Kise's balanced easily at the end of the branch and approaching the man, who inevitably falls from his attempt to get away from the dog. Luckily, there's a gust of wind and a pile of snow beneath him to break his fall and Momoi walks over to check on him, laughing easily as Kise shifts back and joins her.

Was he the only one who couldn't move on?

* * *

"Aominecchi? What are you doing all the way out here?"

Without opening his eyes or moving, he answers, "Thinking."

A pause. "Well, that's a first."

"Shut up."

When he cracks open an eye, he finds Kise's face in front of his, golden eyes curious and anxious. "It must be serious if you're thinking this hard about it."

Aomine shrugs. Instead of answering, he asks, "What are you doing after this?"

"After what? Kurokocchi and Kagamicchi are lighting the bonfire to look for his brother later?" Kise says uncertainly.

"Not that. I mean when they leave," he says. "Are you planning on going with them?"

At this, Kise hesitates, keeping his gaze averted to avoid any look of disapproval he may receive. "Yes, I meant to tell you. I can't stay here, not while they're going around trying to help us. They even saved me back in Kaijou. The least I can do is be there for them when they need help. I know you don't like Kagamicchi, but—"

"Actually, I was thinking about going with you," he cuts in.

Kise's eyes widen in excitement. "Really? You'll come along and help, Aominecchi?"

He shrugs again. "It was just a passing thought."

The inugami leans forward. "Are you really considering it? This better not be a joke! You should come with us! Kurokocchi could use the help and we can finally fight together!" He pauses. "To be honest, I didn't think you'd leave Momocchi here on her own."

That was one of the many things he was busy thinking about after his conversation with Kuroko. "She won't be on her own. It's still something I need to talk to her about, but…I think she's been able to take care of herself for a long time now," he says with a slight frown. "Would it really be that great if I came? You seemed to be having plenty of fun with the rest of them."

"It's not the same," Kise insists. "Kagamicchi still can't beat me in a spar, you know?"

Aomine scoffs. "What'd you expect? He's human."

Kise huffs. "He's really strong for a human though! But I'd still like it if you came along. Instead of being shielded and sent away, I think travelling and fighting at your side would be amazing. And…I think it'd make me very happy."

Aomine arches a brow and reaches out to pull the other down, eliciting a startled yelp from the inugami as he lands on his chest. If there happened to be a strange expression on his face as he pulled the other down, that was merely a coincidence.

Running a hand through soft, golden strands, he hums thoughtfully. "Oh? Got started on that order right away, didn't you? I guess I wouldn't mind finding new things to fight. Make sure you don't get in my way though, Kise."

"How mean!" Kise protests, looking up at him. "I'll be right there fighting with you!"

He smiles and flicks the other's nose. "Yeah, sure, if you say so."

* * *

In the evening, after his nap with Kise, he wanders around the grounds and finds Momoi sitting in back of the main shrine. Pausing, he walks towards her and says without embellishment, "Hey, Satsuki, I'm thinking about going with Tetsu and Kise."

Momoi smiles as he takes a seat next to her. "I thought you might. You should go. They're going to need all the help they can get on this epic journey to purge the land of evil. It's too bad it's still so warm out or I would've offered to come, but I'll feel a lot better knowing you're there with them."

"Well, you're not wrong about them needing help." A pause. "Will you be alright here?" He hesitates for a moment, the words feeling foreign in his mouth. "Youkai and humans will continue coming and some of them might even decide to take up residence here."

She blinks, looking taken aback by his concern, but then her eyes soften and her lips curl into a soft smile. "Dai-chan, you've been looking out for me since even before Master left and you've barely left my side since that incident, but I promise you, I'll be fine. I think being on my own for a while might actually be a good thing. I mean, I've got the others to help me if I need and I've gotten stronger—I even managed to stop you the other day, didn't I?"

He scowls and doesn't mention that if she ever felt inclined to use her full powers, she could easily overpower every single one of them.

"I'm not as naïve as I once was," Momoi continues, "and I'm more cautious around humans now, but, I've never once thought them evil or unworthy. Speaking honestly, I wouldn't be opposed to them taking residence here. I've made peace with the past, Dai-chan, and I think there are humans out there who we can place our trust in. Like Kagami-kun, maybe?"

Aomine rolls his eyes. "You're just saying that because he's travelling with Tetsu."

Reaching over, she smacks him on the arm. "Hey! That's not…completely true. Tetsu-kun may be a good judge of character, but Kagami-kun has also proven himself since he's arrived. He's kind and a lot more helpful than you ever were."

He frowns and elbows her. "Oi, what's that supposed to mean?"

With a laugh, Momoi teases, "It means exactly that. Even Ki-chan likes him! Did you get a chance to watch them spar earlier? They looked like they were having so much fun—oh, is that why you don't trust him? You _do_ have quite the jealousy streak."

"Shut up! I didn't come here to be laughed at!" he protests loudly.

She lets her laughter subside before taking one of his hands into hers, something they used to do habitually when they were small. "I know. You came to tell me you'll be gone for a while. I'll be fine here, Dai-chan. This will be good for us; in fact, I forbid you from staying," she insists. "I can do my part, so go and help Tetsu-kun. Bring them all back to me alive."

Aomine gives her hand a light squeeze. "Consider this place yours then."

Suddenly, he feels unsure of what to do with himself. There's a sense of emptiness where some of his responsibilities and protectiveness once were. He frowns, wondering if he should just go sleep off the unfamiliar feeling of uselessness and _nothingness_.

As though sensing this, Momoi says, "Just because Touou Shrine is in my care now, don't think you can slack off. I could still use your help. If you could set up some of your own wards alongside Kagami-kun's, I think it'd help keep the youkai at bay since they recognize your magic."

He relaxes a fraction. "Yeah, I'll get that done before I leave."

"Do you know when that'll be?"

"Probably tomorrow or the day after. They're all healed and all the preparations are about done," he answers. "I'm surprised you're still sitting around here. Last I checked, Tetsu was getting ready to use the bonfire to look for that other human."

Letting go of his hand, Momoi leaps to her feet with sudden urgency. "That was _tonight_? Why didn't you say so sooner? I hope Tetsu-kun doesn't start without me!" He rolls his eyes and watches her run off, but not before she turns around and calls out, "Dai-chan?"

"Hn?"

"I'll be alright," she says again. "We'll all be alright—and thank you."

Aomine waves her off with a scoff. "Whatever, it's not like I did anything."

* * *

A/N: Micchan is Miki Arai, one of Momoi's friend from Teikou. Wow, that was a terrible block. To give it more context, in the time between updates, I managed to quit my old job and got a new one. Hopefully the next chapter will come more quickly!


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